NaLu Week 2018
by Grizzly98
Summary: It's that time of year again. When I get to add eight new oneshots to the every growing collection that comes with our favorite ship. NaLu Week! Bring a box of tissues! My choices for this year: Drive, Fascination, Sanctum, Waking, Robin Hood, Blessing, Sensation, and Chained. Hope y'all enjoy.
1. Drive

**Grizz: *groans* Fuck a duck, screw a guinea. My brain feels like mush.**

 **Mira: Well, that's what you get for procrastinating with NaLu Week. Go eat some ice cream, it will freeze your brain to prevent it from becoming anymore mushy than it already is.**

 **Grizz: *Snorts* I didn't procrastinate. I've been busy at this for the last three weeks! I'm TIRED.**

 **Mira: And I'm Betty White.**

 **Grizz: *laughs* Alright, alright, I'll give you that one. Anyway what do you think we should tell the readers for this upcoming week?**

 **Mira: Be prepared for a wild roller coaster with the tear ducts working over time. Also, a slight cliche cause why the hell not.**

 **Grizz: *eyeroll* I can do cliches if I want. I just prefer not to. It keeps the readers on their toes. Plus you're just mad I spoiled it for you.**

 **Mira: …. Bueller. BUELLER!**

 **Grizz: Anyway, my lovely and ever faithful readers. If you have not read the A/N I put in Vampire Trinity when I updated, then I'll explain why I haven't updated anything else since May? I think it was. Besides Life being well Life, I've had my attention solely on getting NaLu Week done. And I must say I'm quite proud with how it's turned out. Hell, I've even made my Beta cry with some of the oneshots. Anyway, I still have a little bit of writing to do so I'll leave my muse, Mira to sign us off.**

 **Mira: Welcome to NaLu Week! It's gonna be an exciting and fantastic week full of amazing stories! Enjoy the wild roller coaster ride that will be NaLu Week 2018!**

 **Summary: Human Lucy and pet dragon Natsu. She doesn't understand it. Why her pet dragon always brings her dead animals. She could never guess it is his drive to protect his human and his gratitude that leads him to his activities.**

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Pre NaLu Week Bonus: Drive

Rundown buildings pass by at a crawl. Trash litters broken sidewalks often only broken up by pedestrians or homeless people curling in alleys and doorways to escape the early December snow.

Breath fogs the car window and the blonde behind the window leans back with a sigh. To put it simply—she doesn't want to be in this part of the city...She doesn't _like_ to be in this part of the city. Seeing those down on their luck and forced to live on the street stabs at her heart with a needle of ice. Her mother had raised to be kind to those in need and to help any way she can. It's why she and her friend volunteer in soup kitchens, run and organize charity events and the ilk… And apparently why said friend is taking her to the center of the city of Magnolia's most crime-ridden neighborhood. Why are they in said neighborhood? She has no clue.

She sighs, her head falling against the cold glass once more. Until she hears a giggle.

"Cheer up, Lu-chan. We're almost there." The blonde casts a halfhearted glare at the bluenette in the driver's seat.

"Maybe I'm a little moody because you kidnapped me from my apartment the night before Christmas, Levy," The blonde huffs, sitting up in her seat. "and the worst part is you won't even tell me where we're going."

Levy smiles, pulling into a parking lot. The car comes to a stop and Levy raises a hand to the short, run-down building in front of them. "This is where I wanted to bring you, Lu-chan."

The blonde looks up, her eyes immediately zeroing in on the sign reading:

 _Magnolia City All Animal Shelter_

"Ever since the whole situation with Loke I've been really worried about you living on your own but because I know you're stubborn I reached out to a friend to get something that will bolster your security and allow you to keep your independence."

She slides out of the car after her friend, frowning in confusion as she shrinks into her coat. "So you brought me to the worst part of town to get a dog?"

Together they walk up the salted sidewalk to the single metal door and Levy giggles. "No, Lu-chan, not a dog."

"A cat?" This earns a shake of the head and she scowls. "Well, what else could it be?"

Levy smirks, glancing over her shoulder. "You'll just have to wait and see."

Inside the building, the duo pauses in front of a desk where a small blue cat sits sleeping in a bed. She smiles, reaching out to scratch the cat while Levy rings the bell.

"Be with you in a minute!" Comes from a door behind the desk. As they wait Levy scratches the cat as well, a loud purr letting the women know the cat is enjoying the attention.

When the duo hears a giggle they look up to find a woman with short platinum hair standing in the doorway. She smiles, walking toward them and glances at the cat. "Happy seems to love you two, then again he loves anyone who'll pay him attention." Then she turns, smiling at the bluenette. "Hey, Levy, I assume this is the one you were talking about over the phone?"

Levy nods. "Lisanna, this is Lucy. Lucy this is Lisanna. She works full time here looking after the animals."

Both women smile, Lucy extending a hand.

"Hello, It's nice to meet you, even if she refuses to tell me what we're doing here."

Lisanna giggles, shaking her hand. "I know what you mean. Lev can be downright devious when she wants to be." After she lets Lucy's hand go she walks around the desk to another door. "If you'll follow me I'll show you why she decided to bring you here. I think her choice will definitely be right up your alley."

Still confused but more ecstatic, she follows the platinum-blonde through tiled halls echoing with barking and the noise of large fans running. Walking past a hall full of cages she guesses are where they keep the dogs, Lucy follows Lisanna through another door before coming to a large metal one that lacks a window to see through. What concerns her though is the warning sign screwed to the door:

 _Warning! Do not enter without closed-toe shoes, a hard hat, and food!_

She swallows, looking over to where Lisanna is already putting on a hard hat. "Why do we need hard hats?"

The caretaker easily smiles, holding up an extra hat to the blonde. "It's only for safety precautions. City law states that extra protection is required when dealing with them but really they're just a bunch of softies that wouldn't hurt a fly."

"And who is _they_?"

Lisanna grins, reaching for the door handle with a bucket of fish in hand. "Why dragons of course."

Standing halfway in the door, Lucy pales drastically when she hears the reply. She steps backward, her eyes glancing around for any sight of the scaly fire-breathing reptiles.

"D-Dr-Dragons?!"

Lisanna sighs heavily, turning back to the blonde. "Lucy, I promise you they won't hurt you. If anything these guys are more scared of you then you are of them." She steps toward the woman, offering a hand. "Just trust me, these guys won't hurt you."

Against her better knowledge, Lucy takes the hand, allowing the caretaker to pull her completely through the door. When Lisanna holds up the bucket, Lucy takes it, watching anxiously as Lisanna shuts the door behind them. The caretaker turns back, smiling sheepishly at her.

"Sorry but it's shelter rules. Dragons like to make a snack out of cats and dogs so in order to not end up losing the other inhabitants we have to keep the door shut even if we're inside"

The blonde nods. Slowly, watching and listening to Lisanna has her anxiety dwindling, such that when the caretaker holds out a hand for the bucket Lucy asks hesitantly, "Would it be okay if I held it?"

She's surprised, Lucy can tell, by the question but her easy-going nature has the caretaker nodding in acquiescence. "Alright, but if they get to be too much just throw the bucket away from you."

With another quiet nod, the blonde follows Lisanna. The further they walk the more Lucy notices the rising temperature until they reach another door, this one nothing more than a door sized chain link gate. On the other side, Lucy can see a small field of grass surrounding several medium sized trees growing in large planters. On several of the tree branches, the blonde can see piles of grass that remind her of a bird's nest she had found as a child.

"Dragons are a slight bit harder to take care of than dogs or cats because they can be extremely grumpy and territorial if they don't have a nest of their own so we had the atrium or Dragonarium as I like to call it built to allow up to twenty dragons of ranging size their own space." As she speaks she pulls a key ring from her belt and unlocks the gate, allowing Lucy in first before shutting and locking the gate back. "Only the larger ones tend to make nests on the ground so we've found that as long as the tree branches are large enough the smaller ones are perfectly happy with staying up and away from the older ones."

Lucy looks up, surprised to find the ceiling made of glass, allowing her to see the snow falling from the clouds in the sky. Much to her shock, the snow that touches the roof melts right away. Only then does she notice she's nearly sweating in her coat that when outside, barely stopped the cold.

Lisanna smiles, walking up to stand beside her. "Dragons run hotter than normal animals. As such the Dragonarium is almost always the hottest place in the shelter. Great in the winter when the blizzards can make it hard to heat such a large space, in the summer not so much."

As if on cue a large black scaled reptile the size of a large German shepherd rises from a pile of hay and wanders over, rubbing against Lisanna's leg with a rumbling purr. The caretaker giggles, crouching down to set a hand between the horns sweeping around the sides of its head.

"Hello, Skiadrum, did you miss me?" The dragon rumbles, headbutting her. She laughs, glancing up at the blonde to find her watching awestruck. Lisanna waves, gesturing for her to bend down. "Come on, the only way they pay you attention is if you get on their level."

Lucy gets on her knees and Lisanna grabs a small fish from the bucket, offering it to the dragon before speaking again.

"Skiadrum here is a shadow dragon. He—"

"I didn't know there was a difference?" Lucy speaks softly, afraid to spook the large gentle animal. The caretaker turns to her, grinning.

"There is, believe me, each dragon is about as different from one another as humans are. There are seven classifications of dragons depending on what kind of element they breathe but there are also subcategories upon subcategories that would take forever to explain." She runs a hand down the dragon's back, pausing to scratch particularly hard between its furled pitch black wings. "Fire, metal, lightning, air, shadow, light, and poison are the main categories that scientists have discovered so far. Right now we have," She pauses, looking around the atrium in a quick mental count. "I wanna say four of those categories here. We had all seven but Lev adopted the metal dragon we had, my sister just adopted the lightning dragon yesterday, and the poison was adopted last week by a lovely barmaid my sister knows."

Her hand stills on the dragon's back and Skiadrum, annoyed at being ignored, walks forward trying to stick his nose in the bucket. Lisanna wraps her arms around his neck, pulling him backward and scowls.

"Skiadrum, you know better than that. Only one fish per dragon in between feedings."

Rumbling in annoyance the dragon turns around, rubbing his head against her stomach. She smiles, running her fingers up and down his neck as she looks back at Lucy.

"Anyway, Skiadrum here is the oldest of the dragons here right now. He's pretty quiet and tends to leave the other dragons alone but if you're not careful he'll disappear on you."

The blonde smiles, reaching out to run a hand down his side and shakes her head. "He's nice but if I am gonna get a dragon then I need one that's a bit smaller, and maybe a bit more energetic?"

Lisanna shrugs, leaning back to look the shadow dragon in the eye. "Sorry, old guy, looks like you got turned down again. Maybe next time?"

He huffs, a wisp of what looks to be black smoke coming from his nose and he turns away, returning to his nest. The women get back up, Lisanna leading Lucy closer to one of the trees.

"I forgot to warn you. The dragons here are pretty smart, they seem to understand almost everything we say. The younger and smaller ones like to play innocent and adorable to get on your good side, don't pay attention to it. All they want is the fish."

Lucy nods, watching Lisanna approach a particularly small white dragon watching them from where it's curled in a nest of woven grass and feathers. The caretaker smiles, reaching up to scratch it.

"Hello, Wendy." It purrs, turning its head to allow her access to the skin under its white scales and Lisanna looks over her shoulder. "Wendy here is the youngest dragon we have at the moment. She and her mother, Grandine, were brought in before Wendy hatched and have been here since. Grandine should be…" She looks around, finally turning her gaze up higher in the tree and grins. "There she is."

Reaching back the caretaker grabs a fish from the bucket, holding it above her head. "Come on down, Grandine, there's someone who wants to meet you."

Lucy almost misses it, watching the older dragon leap from the top of the tree to glide down in slow lazy circles, but she hears the little one chirp quietly as if asking a question. She smiles, reaching into the bucket and holds up a smaller fish to her.

"You want one too?"

The dragon blinks and launches forward, small sharp teeth snatching the meal from her fingers. Lucy jumps back in shock, opening and closing her hand to check she still has all her digits. Lisanna giggles, looking up from where she runs a hand over the larger dragon's spine.

"Sorry about that. I forgot to mention sky dragons are extremely quick. They're some of the fastest dragons out there besides lightning dragons and can sometimes move faster than the human eye can follow. Wendy's going through a growth spurt at the moment and is sometimes a little faster then she can handle. You should see when Grandine teaches her to fly, it's kind of hilarious to watch."

Lucy smiles, kneeling beside the white dragon. A question occurs to her and she glances at the caretaker. "How long does a mother dragon stay with their young?"

Lisanna inhales sharply. "That's a bit of a problem. See, scientists think the nurturing and growth stage lasts about three years. It's nearly impossible to separate a youngling from its mother before then because the mother is extremely protective, and if separated too young the youngling dies before too long." They share a sad smile, the answer clear between them and Lisanna gets up, patting Grandine once more. "There are still two more types, maybe one will catch your attention?"

Despite how shocked she had been when they had started, now being here for twenty minutes and having listened to Lisanna's explanations Lucy's more than determined to find one of these balls of scales she may be able to take home with her. Seeing her determined expression Lisanna grins, walking over to a tree further away from the gate. As they approach the tree a white light flashes in front of them, hitting the ground mere feet from them and sending of a wisp of smoke.

The caretaker scowls, turning to face a massive pile of straw where Lucy can just pick out a white snout poking through.

"Weisslogia, don't be rude." There's a rumbling sound similar to a bark and Lisanna crouches, glaring at the pile of straw. "I know it was you. Now come on out and meet my friend."

Another bark and Lisanna rolls her eyes, looking up at the blonde. "I don't think Mister Grump will be coming out anytime soon. The other light dragon we have, Sting, decided to try and steal Weisslogia's nest a few days ago and Weisslogia is holding a grudge against him."

Lucy nods in acknowledgment and Lisanna stands up, reaching into the bucket to throw a fish near the nest before walking away. The blonde, however, pauses. Quietly she watches as a pair of horns similar to deer antlers emerge from the pile followed by a narrow snout covered in white whiskers. Under the chin, the whiskers come together to form what appears to be a small beard giving the dragon a sort of ancient wisdom kind of look. When the dragon snaps up the fish, casting her a wary eye she smiles and turns away.

So far, all the large dragons she's seen have ranged from the size of a large German shepherd like Skiadrum to the short, squat and muscled form of Grandine. Adding Weisslogia's long thin body to the picture she's surprised the dragons have such different body types.

"Lucy." She looks up, jerked from her thoughts by the whisper-yell to find Lisanna holding a hand over her mouth to quiet her laughter and pointing at a white form stuck in between a forked tree branch. Lucy walks closer, giggling as well when she sees the reason for the laughter is, in fact, a miniature of the light dragon trapped between the branches.

The little light dragon—she assumes it's a light dragon—is about as long as her arm, as thin as a dachshund, with legs that are long and spindly. Overall if she didn't know better and ignored the antler-like horns sprouting from its head as well as the wings she'd think it a white wiener dog and chihuahua mix.

Getting over her laughter, Lisanna reaches up, one hand pinching the wing joints together, the other pushing its tail to tuck under its body and carefully frees it from the branch. She grins, holding the little dragon up to Lucy.

"This is Sting. He and Natsu are our resident troublemakers. Well," She pauses, glancing at a pile of half burnt straw in one of the planters. Shaking her head she looks back at the blonde. "Sting's the one who turned Weisslogia into Mister Grump for the time being. He's somehow got it into his head that he can go around and mess with the bigger dragons without repercussions. Before the metal dragon was adopted out he, the metal, and Natsu would keep each other distracted and largely out of trouble."

"Why are you holding him like that?" She's curious, watching the dragon be so calm in Lisanna's grasp. The caretaker grins, turning to show her more easily.

"You know the way mother cats and dogs hold their young by their scruff to keep them calm?"

She frowns in thought. "Doesn't it release endorphins to calm them?"

Lisanna nods. "Yeah. The same goes for dragons but since dragon scales are so tough you grab them by the wing joints simultaneously and it stops them from trying to wriggle free." As if in reply Sting huffs, turning his head to glare at the platinum-haired worker. In return, she grins, leaning closer to him. "Hey, you're the one who got stuck in a tree. Next time I can just leave you for Weisslogia to toy with."

The light dragon growls and Lisanna sets him up on the tree branch. Lucy walks closer, offering up one of the last fish in the bucket. Sting sniffs at it, licking her fingers as well before carefully pulling the fish off and taking off for higher in the tree. The caretaker turns to her, arching an eyebrow to ask the silent question.

Lucy just shakes her head, turning back to watch the light dragon. "He's adorable and more of the size I was thinking but if he's willing to get on the bad side of a dragon four times his size he might be too much of a troublemaker for me."

Nodding in acceptance the caretaker walks over to the tree she had glanced at. "That leaves our final draconic occupant." She pauses, looking back at the blonde. "I just don't know if he's gonna be willing to leave his nest or not."

She frowns in concern, walking up beside the woman. "Why wouldn't he? Even Weisslogia came out for fish."

Lisanna sighs, her eyes wandering to a blackened mark in the artificial grass near one wall. "We used to have two fire dragons. One being Natsu and the other was a much older dragon named Igneel. Both were really close, often with Igneel being one of the only ones to have any patience for his antics. Three days ago, we don't know what happened but when I and a couple others came in to clean the Dragonarium we found that Igneel had died overnight. Natsu was crushed. Ever since he's refused to eat, play with Sting, or even leave his nest. We've tried everything but with it being the holiday season everyone's gone and I've been so busy with taking care of the shelter I haven't had time to focus on the little guy."

Her story rings with Lucy, and the blonde looks at the charred nest, her mind seeming to make itself up. She nods, walking around the tree to find a little black dragon about Sting's size curled in the straw looking pitifully small. She smiles sadly, kneeling in front of the planter.

Up close she can hear the dragon whimper, a sound that pulls at her heartstrings.

She reaches out, laying a hand on the dragon's body and his eyes pop open. Inwardly she gasps, shocked by just how much grief is within the jade green eyes. He—Natsu, she has to remember—whines, shuffling his wings and turns his back to her. Instead of moving away like she had when the others ignored her, she stays put, gently setting her hand back on him, this time running her thumb over his hide in soothing circles.

She knows Lisanna talks to them, says they're intelligent, and she believes it. So then why does it feel ridiculous for her to try? It shouldn't.

"Natsu," It feels like she's talking to a spooked animal, trying to use a calm and soothing voice. Maybe she is? "come now. I know you miss your Igneel." She glances at Lisanna in question earning a nod. "I know you're missing Igneel, but you can't do this to yourself. Lisanna says you're playful and energetic and always getting into trouble with Sting."

His head tilts, giving her the idea he's listening. She smiles sadly sliding her hand up to his neck the way she's seen Lisanna do with the others.

"I'm looking for a dragon to take home with me. Someone who's energetic and playful and who won't let me be lonely."

He turns his head, one jade eye staring into her own chocolate brown as if to say _why me?_

She knows it can be taken one of two ways. And she leans down, gently tracing the scales between the horns on his head. One horn, she notices, is broken in half—the top three inches of it missing.

Gently rubbing the smaller scales of the ridges over his eyes has a purr rumbling through his body. His eyelids fall halfway closed and his body uncurls, the small spikes on the tip of his tail tapping the nest in pleasure.

"Wow, Lucy." The blonde doesn't remember seeing Lisanna sidle up to her side. She nearly jumps up, stopping herself at the last second before spooking the dragon. Nervous about keeping the dragon calm she holds a finger to her lips to keep the caretaker quiet then slowly reaches for the last fish.

"Natsu," She coos, watching his jade eyes open in curiosity. "if you eat I'll let you come with me. I even have a nice juicy fish here for you."

Slowly she pulls it out of the bucket. His eyes are on it, the only part of his body moving besides the tip of his tail slowly flicking back and forth. He rumbles in what she guesses is aggravation and gets up. He stretches, opening his mouth in a wide yawn revealing an adorable forked pink tongue surrounded by serrated teeth sharp enough to take a finger off in one bite. With his rump in the air, his wings stretch wide, revealing orange membranes that contrast to the color of his scales.

Or what Lucy assumes are his scales until she notices a large black spot where he'd been laying along with the smudged black on her hand. She wants to ask Lisanna but she knows it can wait until she completely has Natsu's attention. Speaking of which…

She's drawn from her thoughts when he hacks a cough, a large red and orange flame shooting from his mouth and hitting the fish. She drops it on the ground, wearily watching the Scottish terrier sized dragon leap after it.

While he eats she takes careful notice of the differences between the little fire dragon and the other dragons she's seen.

He's no bigger than Sting—only coming up to maybe her shin in height—but his legs, neck, and head are bulkier with muscle than the fleet-footed light dragons. It comes to mind if he was a human he'd be more of a fighter than the sky or light dragons. His snout is wider, allowing for bigger teeth and more jaw strength. On the right side of his jaw, she sees a large scar, even visible through the black that disappears under the jaw bone.

"Why is he black?"

She looks to Lisanna, utilizing the distraction to ask some questions.

Lisanna points at the charred marks on the wall. "After we removed Igneel's body he burned the nest and rolled in it. This is the closest anyone has gotten to him since so we haven't quite had a chance to give him a bath."

So the black is really just soot and ash. That's one question off her mind.

"What are the characteristics I need to know?"

At this point, he's done with his fish. He turns, walking up to Lucy with wide eyes. She can only watch in wonder as he effortlessly leaps onto her shoulder. His nails dig into her coat, allowing him a grip and he purrs, rubbing his cheek against hers.

Lucy giggles, ignoring the soot mark on her face for the time being to scratch his chin as Lisanna crawls forward.

"Well if he's the one you want there are a couple things you need to know. Fire dragons burn the hottest of all dragons. Excellent for the winter but forget about blankets in the summer. Also, since it seems he's already so close to you, you may wanna forget about even trying to train him to sleep on the floor or wherever you put his bed. He'll just end up beside you come morning. As for diet wise, he'll eat just about anything but he also eats _a lot_. Instead of three meals a day we have to split it up so he gets a snack in between each meal or else he starts trying to go after the cats and dogs."

Gently scratching the fire dragon's head she sits back, throwing a thumb over her shoulder at the gate.

"One of the volunteers forgot to feed him one time and we had to get a new door because he nearly burnt through it."

They both giggle, unaware of the dragon beginning to doze in his spot wrapped around her neck.

"So, feed him more than three times a day, lose the blankets during summer, anything else I need to know?"

The caretaker frowns, her eyes softening at the sight of the peaceful little creature. "Yeah, two big things. In the underworld, fire dragons and metal dragons are most often used in fighting rings. Two years ago, Natsu was rescued from one. We assume that's where he lost half his horn and got the scar on his cheek. He has a short temper and will try to fight anything he deems fight worthy. Natsu is young, we estimate him to be about five years old. Dragons tend to live for about half a century so he still has a lot of room to grow. Are you prepared to take on such a long journey?"

Lucy looks down at the dragon, reaching up to scratch his head in thought and grins. "Yeah, I think we can handle it."

The caretaker grins. "Awesome. Let's go ahead and get him washed up and some more food in him then we can write up the adoption papers."

As if in answer the dragon rumbles his content, his eyes closed in a light slumber.

 _ **A year later…**_

"Natsu!"

He jumps up, his wings flapping in excitement. That was his human, his special one, called him.

 _He must go_. With that thought he leaps off the bed, racing down the hall as fast as his claws can without skidding on the wood. If he really wanted to go fast he would fly but fly bad. Fly no allowed in the special human's house.

So he runs. Around the corner and down the steps he so likes to drape himself across to nap.

At the bottom he flings his tail around, the extra limb allowing him to spin on his claws down another hall into the room of all the good smells and all the good food he can only eat when his special human says he can.

Skidding to a stop before he can hit the little wooden doors that are so fun to pry open he turns, panting, to find his special human standing over the gift he hunted that morning when she let him outside to go flying.

He purrs. _Good gift yes? Gift good? Human gift like?_

His human groans, kneeling to look him in the eye. He likes looking in her eyes. His human's eyes are so deep he thinks he could fly forever in them.

"Natsu, I said you could keep your kills but you can't keep bringing them inside."

 _Human not like? Gift no?_ He rumbles. His eyes going wide in terror, he crouches, wings pinned tightly to his sides. Always protect his wings. That's what he was taught. Protect his wings and he can fly away from danger he can't fight.

His human sighs this time, her voicing falling lower. "Natsu, you're not in trouble."

No! He won't fall for it! He won't fall for her loving sounds and soft coos and _ooh_ , _that's it._ He purrs, leaning into the hand scratching the scarred scales on his cheek. Those scales always itch when he sheds.

He sighs, sitting on his rump to lean further into her touch. It doesn't matter how scared he is of her, he loves his human and her soft voice and softer touch and hands that seem to know all the right places to scratch.

 _Up. Up._ He rumbles, tilting his head down for her to scratch between his horns and she giggles.

"Oh, what am I gonna do with you?"

Eyes half-lidded, the look of content he gives her speaks more words then even he can recognize from his human. She sighs.

"I'm not mad, Natsu. I just wish you would stop bringing your kills inside. The neighbors are starting to get suspicious when I have to keep burying the bones."

He rumbles. _Gift you. Good gift? Like gift you?_

She shakes her head with a smile. "Sorry, I don't understand dragon rumble."

Now he groans. _You smart. You not know dragon?_ He gets up, walking around her and drags his gift in front of her. Then he drops it, sitting on his haunches and purring. _Gift you. Gift like love love you._

He's never been able to read human faces like other humans and older dragons can but he can read the signs in their voices and touch. That's how he knew his human was a good human, that his human was to be his.

She lets out a short laugh, rubbing his head again. "Okay, I understood that—"

 _Other humans!_ He turns his head away, glaring at the wooden door his human enters their nest through. He can hear their voices along with several dragons he recognizes from the old bad good nest he used to live in.

A bell rings and he growls. He opens his mouth to bare his teeth at the intruders and his human laughs, setting a hand on his head.

"Easy, Natsu. Let's go see who it is." Rumbling his agreement he climbs up the arm his human offers him and settles on her shoulder. When he loops his tail around her neck he rubs his cheek against hers, purring his content and happiness.

His human rises and he digs his claws in, his wings flapping loosely to hold his balance until she stands tall and he can see everything he can't see unless he sits on the rock he no allowed to be on when eating.

Then his human walks to the wooden door, the scents of other humans and dragons getting stronger when she opens the door.

He rumbles _why here? You no here!_ to the other dragons with the humans and the light dragon, his playmate from the bad good nest rumbles in return.

 _Humans come. We come humans._

Natsu snorts, his tail flicking in irritation. _My nest. You no nest_.

His human rubs his jaw, drawing his attention and he turns an eye to her. "Natsu, behave. They're here to celebrate with us. Surely you and Sting can get along for a little while."

 _Human like. Human want. Human get._ Though he shows his disagreement with a flare of his wings in warning to the light dragon.

 _Human pet. Fire dragon no better prey._ The lightning dragon standing beside the human reminding him of the nice human from the bad good nest rumbles with arrogance.

He allows his eyes to fall halfway closed and spits a small fireball at the yellow scaled dragon twice his size.

 _Who human pet? Pet._ With that he turns from the lightning dragon back to the Light. _Human gift. Human like. Want show humans?_

The light dragon purrs his agreement and both jump off their human's shoulders to walk to the room of good smells.

 _ **XxX**_

Lucy smiles, watching her dragon walk toward the kitchen with his usual self-assured step. It's hard to believe—for her at least—that it has already been a full year since she adopted the little fire dragon.

Looking at him now, his crimson scales a nice healthy sheen compared to the miserable soot covered reptile she had first met she wouldn't have believed they could be one in the same.

"Hey, Lu-chan." She shakes her head, getting rid of her thoughts, and steps aside, holding a hand up to the rest of her apartment.

"Come on in, guys." With that her friends walk in, pausing to leave their shoes by the door before continuing into the living room.

She follows after them, her eyes landing on the metallic gray dragon clinging to Levy's back. "Hey, Levy-chan." Her friend looks back at her and she gestures to the dragon. "When did Gajeel start riding on your back instead of your shoulder?"

The bluenette smiles, reaching up to rub the metal dragon's chin. He purrs, a sound similar to gravel rolling in a barrel, and leans closer.

"I spoke to Lisanna about it and apparently all dragons do it. Once they reach about ten years old they become too large to sit completely on your shoulder and settle with this. I'm not gonna lie, the first week of him doing it wasn't pleasant." She grimaces. "It took a little practice before he learned not to dig his claws in too deep."

Lucy nods, turning to the woman with long platinum hair sitting in an armchair with the dark yellow lightning dragon laying comfortably at her feet. "Speaking of Lisanna. Where is she, Mirajane? She said she would be here with us."

The woman giggles. "She had to cancel. Someone came into the shelter looking to adopt the sky dragons so she had to stay and get everything organized."

"Really?" She grins when Mira nods. "That's amazing. It's about time those two found a good home."

Since the night she met all the dragons in the Dragonarium she's taken a special interest in them, even going so far as to volunteering with Levy there every weekend. She too has fallen for the sky dragons what with Wendy's whimsically clumsy nature and Grandine's kind and gentle personality. If not for the little bundle of fire-breathing scales getting into trouble somewhere in her apartment already she would've adopted them. So to hear them finally being able to find a home is indeed incredible news.

She turns to the final member of their get together. "So, Yukino. How have things been with Sting?"

Having originally met the shy white-haired girl when she wandered into the shelter looking to adopt a dog, she fell in love with the dragons just as hard as Lucy did when she met Lucy's own dragon. Afterward, it seemed like a match made in heaven between the energetic outgoing light dragon and the introverted woman. Not long after the two women became fast friends and now the blonde sees her as a close friend.

The woman sighs, leaning back in her chair. "I don't know how you do it, Lucy. Sting's all over the place and you wanna know what he did yesterday?"

The blonde arches an eyebrow. "What would that be?"

Yukino scowls, crossing her arms over her chest. "He brought a dead cat into the house!"

Out of the corner of her eye, Lucy sees movement and grins. "You mean like that?"

All four women look over to see the fire and light dragons working together to drag the cat Natsu had killed earlier into the living room. The dragons stop in front of the lit Christmas tree, dropping the carcass and sitting beside it. They look proud of their work, their eyes wide and tails lashing in excitement.

Lucy giggles, tapping her shoulder. A signal she's been training Natsu to climb onto his perch and be out of the way. He jumps up, rushing across the room to do so and when he's settled she scratches his chin.

"Natsu does it all the time. He never eats them though. Not until I say he can. I think it's like he's trying to give me a gift."

 _ **XxX**_

He yawns one eye on his human, the other on the bigger dragons.

 _Human smart. Gift human. Human like._ He purrs, enjoying the scratches his human is giving him.

The lightning dragon huffs, his eyes closed, though the fire dragon knows from experience he's awake. _Why gift? Why act prey? You dragon. Act dragon!_

He knows why he acts like the love-struck dumb prey he hunts. His human is worth it. His human took him from bad good nest and bad bad memories and bad sour scent of missing dragons.

 _Love love human._ He rumbles, laying down on his human's shoulder. _No human still be in bad good nest. No like bad good nest. Like human._

The light dragon purrs. _Agree. Agree fire dragon. Human take from bad good nest. Love love human._

For the first time the metal dragon, his other playmate from bad good nest rumbles, _Agree. Lightning dragon no agree. Human safe. Human love. Human protect. Protect human._

He and the Light purr their agreement. Their humans protect them so they protect their humans. That is what dragons do for those they love.

* * *

 **So, this is pretty much a good example of how the rest of the week will turn out. I've had so much fun doing these that the prompts have just kind of exploded into monster oneshots. And I mean I have one that's over thirty five pages. Yeah, I kinda blew Beta's mind when I sent him the first half of the week at over fifty-two pages total. The second half is even longer and I'm working overtime to get it wrapped up and sent to him.**

 **Anyway, I hoped y'all enjoyed the first taste of NaLu Week and I'll see ya back here on the 18th with the first official day of NaLu Week. My chosen prompt: Fascination. *grins evily***

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


	2. Fascination

**Grizz: NaLu! NaLu! Oh it's NaLu Weeek!**

 **Deadpool: *Pulls pillow over head* Shut the fuck up!**

 **Grizz: *throws basement door open* It's NaLu week! Oh It's NaLu week!**

 **DP: Noooo! *groans* I knew I should've soundproofed the basement.**

 **Grizz: Hey, Wade! *grins darkly* Pay back is a bitch. Wake me up and I get to wake you up. Fortunately for you I'm too busy with worshiping the all great OTP that is Natsu and Lucy to lock you up in the basement. *walks over to radio, plays cd* But I am not too busy to force you to listen to I am a Gummy Bear on replay for the week.**

 **DP: *glares* I'm talking to Satan about rewriting the contract.**

 **Grizz: Good luck with that. In the meantime, my readers, NALU WEEK HAS BEGUN! First up on our agenda, a thirteen thousand word chapter to reign in the wonderful week! Have fun and I will see y'all later!**

 **Summary: Brought to the dragon's nest after being rescued by a being she thought was only a myth Lucy soon learns there is more than meets the eye to the trio of dragons living in a hidden cave system.**

* * *

6/18 Day 1: Fascination

"Lucy!" A blonde woman stops in her tracks, turning back to look at the platinum-haired woman standing in a lit doorway. She smiles, waving to her.

"See you tomorrow, Mira!"

Instead, the woman races down the steps after her, only staying on her neck breaking tall heels by experience alone.

Frozen to her spot in confusion, the blonde allows her friend to catch up to her. Noticing her friend's uncharacteristic frown she's immediately put on edge. "Is there something wrong, Mira?"

Mira stops in front of her. "Lucy, I don't think you should be walking home this late at night."

The blonde shakes her head. "Mira, I get you're concerned but I'll be fine. Look at the street, there's not another soul out."

Her words ring with truth. Not a single car is moving on the quiet street nor is there any other people besides them on the sidewalk.

Still, Mira frowns. "Lucy,"

"I'll be fine." She interrupts her friend calmly. More than used to her friends being protective of her, the blonde knows how to assuage their concerns. "I'll stay to the street lights and walk quickly home. There's no need to worry."

Realizing she won't be able to change the stubborn blonde's mind Mira sighs. "Alright, just text me when you get home."

Lucy nods, turning away from her platinum-haired and continues down the sidewalk. As she turns the corner she misses the concerned expression that crosses her friend's face.

Humming under her breath she smiles, grateful to have such caring friends. Friends she's only known for a year but friends all the same.

She looks up, checking the street sign when she hears footsteps behind her. Her friend's voice in the back of her head has her speeding up to a quick walk as she crosses the street and she glances back, finding a man in a hoodie walking twenty feet behind her on his phone.

 _Okay_. She exhales quietly. Considering the night is kind of chilly for it being mid spring she can buy someone needing a hoodie to keep out the chill.

And besides, almost everyone looks at their phone while they're walking. She'd be doing the same if she didn't want to save her battery to get home.

Speaking of home… She can just barely make out the stoop under a streetlight a block up. The blonde smiles in relief, pausing at another corner to check for cars. When she finds none she extends a foot out to step onto the road and…

A hand wraps around her mouth, jerking her back onto the sidewalk. Struggling she attempts to pull away only to find a heavy muscular arm clinging to her middle. The man behind her chuckles, pulling her closer.

"Whatsa matter, LuLu? Surprised to see me?

Her eyes go wide in terror, recognizing the voice belonging to the man. She struggles harder as the man drags her backward into a dark alley.

Passing several dumpsters he stops behind one and slams her against the wall. Her head bounces off the wall causing her to see stars but still, she glares at him, biting down on his hand to make him release her mouth.

"Dan what are you doing here?" The brunette lazily smirks, pressing her up against the wall.

"What does it look like, LuLu? I'm gonna claim my price as your boyfriend."

She scowls, pushing him away. Attempting to at least. Her Ex is built like a wall with about as much brain matter to match it. How he even found her she doesn't know. "Dan, let me go. I told you we are _done._ "

She really does not like the look in his eye. Particularly when he leans down to drag his tongue up her neck. That sends a shudder of dread down her spine.

"You might be done," He grins darkly. "Honeybunch, but there's something you owe me."

Lucy shakes her head, pushing against him again. "Leave me alone." In retaliation he grabs her wrists, pinning them above her head.

"How about no?"

As he leans down to kiss her, she knees him in the groin hard enough to make him yelp. He stumbles backward, leaning down to cup his groin and she takes off for the sidewalk and the street calling for help.

"Help! Someone! Hel—" Dan grabs her again, a hand cutting off her cry. He drags her back into the darkness of the alley, missing the small _whoosh_ from the air above the street being disturbed.

He slams her face first against the wall. Pinning her to the wall with his body, his hands roam down her body. She whines, trying to get out of the pin. He cuffs her head _hard_ , the blowing causing her head to hit the brick and a small gash split her skin.

"Shut up," He snarls. "I will take my price and then you become mine or I will hunt you down to the ends of Earthland." Grabbing her by her hair he yanks her head back. "You are mine you ungrateful bitch. You hear me?"

He pulls harder, slamming her head against the wall until she stops struggling. When he returns to pulling at her clothes, easily ripping her shirt in the process. She whines hoping someone will hear her.

Her whine disguises a sound akin to small chains rustling against leather, one neither notices until there's a growl from above and behind them. The smell of charcoal and burnt meat fills the alley carried on a wind much too hot for the mid-springnight.

Lucy's too dazed and in pain to notice her attacker moving away. As she slowly comes to realize she's not being pinned she turns around, a bout of dizziness causing her to fall back against the wall.

Holding her head with one hand she looks up, her eyes going wide when she finds a jade eye the size of a tire rim staring at her. For a second, she swears she sees concern in the eye before her eyes roll to the back of her head and she passes out.

 _ **XxX**_

A soft rumble travels through her bones. She moans, rolling over in her soft bed to reach for the alarm clock except…

She finds none.

Cracking her eyelids open results in her immediately slamming them shut from the massive headache that strikes with the force of a thousand drums. The rumble takes over her again, soothing the headache and carefully she opens her eyes again.

Right away her eyes are unfocused, only able to take in the largest of details. Unconsciously she stretches out a hand to pet the white thing in front of her, marveling at the softness of it.

Her eyes focus and she begins to pick out details of the soft things. Like the differing layers separated by the baby blue edge fading into snow white, or the fibers that fold as if on a bird's feather. Looking closer she thinks they could be bird's feathers if it weren't for the rounded edge making them look more like fish scales then feathers.

But...that doesn't make any sense. How could a bird's feather be as round as a fish scale or a fish scale as soft as a feather? They can't.

She blinks, frowning as she tries to recall. Moments later the memories crash upon her like a wave on rocks. Spending the evening with her friends, walking home, her Ex, the alley, and a large green eye?

Shaking her head she sits up, a hand coming to hold her forehead. Oddly nothing hurts. Feeling her face she can find no abrasions or lacerations from where Dan had roughed her up. Even the headache is gone.

That above anything else sets her on edge. She's had headaches and migraines before. Usually, they took a few hours to a day to go away. Never in her life has she had one that went away in a couple minutes.

Looking around she finds herself in some sort of cavern, and a large cavern at that. In the middle, sitting in some kind of natural bowl a large orange and red burns supplying her with warmth and enough light to be able to make out most details.

Details like the handful of tunnels leading further into the rock and the feather bed under her.

Speaking of her bed…

It moves. Yelping she reaches behind her to grab handfuls of the feathers and she looks up, following the 'bed' of white around her up a massive pile of feathers layered more thickly than the ones under her to what appears to be a large flat shield made of yet more feathers.

At least she assumes it's a shield until she sees a pink iris appear from under a set of much smaller feathers. Swallowing, her eyes trail down from the eye the size of a frisbee to the black line she can guess is a mouth, further down near the end of the snout? to where she can see the feathers surrounding the beast's nostrils move with each breath. The same breath she only now realizes is slightly moving her.

She is _laying_ on the beast. More than that she was _sleeping_ on the beast.

A thought occurs to her and she looks up, meeting the beast's eye. She doesn't know if the beast is smart enough to listen but it won't hurt to try...will it?

"What are you?" She's surprised her voice rises above a whisper. The beast must be too for it shifts, turning its head on what she realizes to be its paws to look more closely at her.

For a second nothing happens, then an image appears in her mind. She recoils, looking at the beast in shock and terror. She hadn't thought of the image, she has no idea where it even came from.

However curiosity—and maybe the beast's encouraging eye—compels her to return to the image. In her mind it's too blurred for her to make it out clearly so she closes her eyes, focusing solely on the image above all else.

It clears up into the beast—a she?—flying through the air. Off to her left and right are two other presences. Far below, the ground shoots by in a blur, attesting to how fast she is flying.

The image changes and she's taking off, arrows and spears falling short of her and her companions. One of her companions—Lucy can't tell which—turns and roars at the people on the ground. Fire ignites in his mouth bathing—

She lurches backward, wide eyes staring at the beast below her. "You're a dragon aren't you?"

Somehow, the blonde is unsure, someway the way the _dragon_ blinks sending a nudge into her mind, almost confirming her question.

At first, she's unsure, but the more Lucy thinks about it the more she's positive. The dragon under her is trying to speak to her through telepathy.

Gingerly, Lucy slides off the dragon's back near her head. Looking down she's surprised to find the dragon is laying on what looks to be a bed of grass and her own feathers.

All the myths had said that dragons slept on piles of gold and hoarded the treasures with murderous greed.

The dragon rumbles, the sound similar to tree branches smacking together in a harsh breeze and Lucy smiles. "I guess you find it funny, what us humans think of you?"

Another mental nudge confirms it and she turns around, taking in the dragon from nose to the tip of her white tail. The dragon is no larger than maybe the size of a pickup truck, but the blonde has a feeling she is much stronger then she appears.

As if to confirm this another thought, one not her own, appears of the white dragon tackling a full grown grizzly bear and winning.

Lucy giggles, stepping close to the dragon's snout. Before she touches it, however, she pauses, retreating from the feathered mouth.

"Forgive me, I'm afraid I don't know your name." Her eyes go wide, another thought occurring to her. "Do you even have a name?"

Another mental agreement then an image of her dipping and diving through the sky. Through rain storms, blizzards, bright and sunny skies. The thought evolves, taking on a form Lucy can recognize and she looks at the dragon in awe when four words come to mind.

"Is that what your companions call you? She of the Wild Skies?" She agrees again and Lucy walks closer, eyeing the dragon carefully. "Then, She of the Wild Skies, would it be okay if I pet your snout?"

She feels foolish for asking it now considering she had been laying on the dragon's back not ten minutes before.

As if sensing her hesitation the dragon carefully moves her head off her paws closer to the blonde. Lucy glances up in surprise then lays her hand on the white snout.

Unlike the rest of the dragon, Lucy finds the feathers on her snout to be solid, more like she had expected scales to be. An image from the sky dragon of a lion trying to swipe at her snout but doing no damage explains why and Lucy nods.

The more the blonde runs her hand along the dragon's snout the more she finds her mind filling with thoughts from the dragon, as if she's seeing everything the dragon is thinking of. When she removes her hand the rapid thoughts die away and Lucy comes up with an idea.

With her hand off the dragon, she closes her eyes, focusing on sending a simple statement to the dragon. Getting a questioning thought in return Lucy opens her eyes, returning her hand to the smooth scales.

This time when she tries to send the same thought a massive amount of images are sent in reply, each image rapidly translating into words she can understand. She smiles, looking at the dragon in joy.

"That is impressive. You can speak to me and I can understand you at a distance but in contact, it's almost as if we're actually speaking verbally." Closing her mouth she focuses her thoughts.

 _May I call you Wendy?_

The dragon rumbles in confusion, the image of her name her companions call her followed by a questioning rumble. Lucy sighs, walking over to lean against her side.

"I have a feeling this is gonna take some work." Receiving an exasperated rumble from the dragon she rolls her eyes. "Your dragon name is too much of a mouthful for a human to say. If you'll allow me, I can shorten it to a name that still means you but that I can say easily."

In return, she gets a questioning thought and Lucy bites the inside of her cheek to think of an explanation the dragon can understand. It's obvious the dragon is brilliant, but in the same breath, it's also obvious their minds don't work in the same way.

Getting back to her feet she sets a hand on the dragon's snout once more, projecting her thoughts to the dragon before adding aloud, "She of the Wild Skies is a beautiful name for such a beautiful dragon as yourself but I wouldn't be able to call you that all the time. Now if I were to call you Wendy, it would mean the same thing. A dragon who loves to fly even in the harshest of winds but is still easy for me to say."

The blonde can practically see the dragon's mind rolling over the idea. At first, the white dragon is hesitant but as her mind rolls over the idea, she starts to accept it more readily until finally, she sends Lucy an agreement.

Lucy smiles and Wendy rumbles her content.

Thought the moment is soon broken. A small headache starts at the back of her skull, quickly building until it threatens to drown the blonde and she stumbles, Wendy catching her with her snout.

Lucy moans as the sky dragon sets her back down on her back but she can pay no more attention. The pain rises into a war drum beat until out of the corner of her vision she sees a dark gray dragon appear in front of the sky dragon.

She closes her eyes, trying to force back the headache when Wendy snaps at the gray dragon followed by the now familiar rumble the sky dragon emits. Curling in on herself she feels the headache begin to slowly subside.

When the headache is gone the sky dragon asks her if she is okay. Lucy nods, looking up at the dragon from her ball. "I'm okay now. What was that?"

Wendy rumbles an apology followed by the image of a dark gray, nearly black dragon flying beside herself. After that Lucy receives an image she can't quite make out.

Deciding to test her theory again she carefully slides down the sky dragon's side until she can touch her snout and Wendy sends her the image again. This time Lucy sees a sword being pointed at her and her companions.

However, when she still doesn't understand it Wendy focuses upon the sword, watching the metal melt from one of her companion's attacks.

She glances up. "He of the metal?" Getting a _no_ in return she turns the image over again, this time thinking of something her friend, Levy had told her from a book about forging she had read. "Not metal then how about steel?"

She gets an agreement and she frowns, thinking on the second part of the image. The darkness of a cave, a darkness that sits on the edge of a fire or hides away from the sun.

Though Lucy has a pretty good idea she has a feeling she'll most likely mess it up anyway. Still, she tries.

"Wendy, is your friend's name He of the Shadow Steel or Black Steel?"

In answer the dragon rumbles her agreement, opening her mouth to breath a small trill similar to that of a bird's call. Lucy giggles until her stomach rumbles, making her wonder how much time has passed since she last ate. More than that, though, she wonders how long she has been there.

Her thoughts must get through to the dragon because Wendy begins to move, pushing Lucy back up her side onto a partially outstretched wing. Unsure of what exactly is happening the blonde merely clings to the feathers, watching the dragon roll onto her stomach then slowly rises to her feet.

When Wendy shakes her wing, turning her head to look at the blonde, Lucy slides over onto the dragon's back. After Wendy is satisfied with her position she turns away, trotting across the cavern.

As Wendy turns down a particularly large tunnel the blonde is struck by the idea that if Wendy—who is large enough to equal the length and height of a large pick up truck—can pass through the opening with many feet to spare then maybe her companions are that much larger to make even the sky dragon seem small.

The further down the tunnel they travel the more Lucy finds herself clinging to Wendy for the simple fact that she can't see in the dark. The greater the distance from the fire the less she's able to see until eventually, she's relying completely on the dragon to make it through the tunnel.

Wendy rumbles, an image of a bird sleeping in its nest that Lucy takes to mean _calm_ followed by a random image of the sun shooting across the sky many times.

The blonde smiles. "I had a feeling you knew these caves, Wendy, but I myself do not. I don't even know where we're at right now."

As a source of light appears ahead of them she receives an image of the dragon flying over the city she lives in at night then taking off in the direction of the mountain range in the distance.

She's stunned, to say the least. Such fantastic beings as the sky dragon she's sitting on have been living no more than a hundred miles from the city of Magnolia and not a person has had a clue.

The sky dragon rumbles at the praise and Lucy chuckles.

"Well what else you expect? I've never seen a being as beautiful or as graceful as yourself." She's not sure if she's happy or surprised to find out that some of the myths surrounding dragons to be true. The fact that they seem to be prideful if maybe vain creatures rising to the top of her list of observations, albeit maybe more of the former rather than the latter.

Closing her eyes as the light grows stronger, Lucy turns her head down, waiting for the light to come through her eyelids before she slowly opens them once more. When she does she looks up, her jaw drops in awe at the cavern in front of them.

A stream wanders through the center of the cave, several flashes in the water giving Lucy an idea of the food source the water provides the dragon and her companions.

However, it's not the stream itself that particularly catches the blonde's attention. No, that would be what is allowing her to _see_ the stream. The large hole in the ceiling letting in sunlight.

As Wendy slowly pads toward the stream Lucy cranes her neck, finding the hole nearly large enough to fit the dragon under her in the space three times side by side. Outside of the hole, she can barely make out what she guessed to be white rock making up a part of the mountain range.

Until Wendy sends her an image of the dragon flying above the ice-tipped mountaintop to dive into the hole. Unable to make an idea of it, Lucy can only gape in wonder.

Beneath her Wendy rumbles in amusement, carefully laying down beside the stream so that Lucy can slide off and walk around. Doing so she's surprised to find grass of all things growing in the rock under her feet.

That in itself brings another question to mind. One this time that leaves her completely mystified to even try to puzzle out. So instead of attempting to wrap her head around it, she turns to the source.

"Wendy, if there is ice above us why is it so warm?" Then she gestures to the cavern around them. "How is there grass growing here and fish in the stream?"

In response, the sky dragon merely looks past her. Slowly she turns around, only now hearing the sound of claws scraping against rock. Out of one of the tunnels on the other side of the cavern, a crimson and black snout emerges from the dark.

Lucy swallows, warily watching as the same jade eyes from her memories glow in the darkness of the cave. The dragon steps forward, his head growing larger the more it emerges from the shadows. By the time his midnight black horns emerge from the darkness she can already tell he's more than twice the size of the sky dragon behind her.

It truly is a testament to the size of the cave that a dragon the size of a semi truck can comfortably walk around while another dragon lays spread out on the opposite bank of the stream.

As the dragon steps further into the sunlight, its head held high with confidence, chocolate eyes trail down its profile, landing first on the large scar wrapping under its right cheek then traveling over the black ribbed webbing behind its jaw to the large row of spikes splitting off in a v-shape down its back. The wings on its back are more similar to those of a bat's what with the arms jutting out from between the dragon's shoulders covered in dark red scales, darkening into the black scaled ribbing connecting the red membranes together. Nearly completely different from Wendy's own birdlike wings.

The dragon in question snorts, walking further down the stream to take a drink. As it's tail swishes around, Lucy sees black spikes at the end of its nearly twenty-foot long tail. Seeming as if they are long and sharp enough to gore a man to death branching from its dark red, nearly black tail tip. As she turns to look the dragon in the eye a new question comes to mind, this one not of her own making. She smiles, struggling through translating the thoughts less and less.

"I am okay. Thank you for asking."

It rumbles, turning to walk up the side of the stream still opposite of herself and the sky dragon. It lays down, stretching so that its back and wings are facing away from them and yawns, bringing its mouth shut with a loud _snap_.

Lucy bites back a giggle, glancing at Wendy in amusement. "He's one for showing off isn't he?" Somehow—she doesn't know how—she just gets a feeling that this new dragon is a he. The same way she gathered Wendy was a female by the touch of their minds against hers.

The sky dragon rumbles an agreement, raising her head to look at the new dragon as well. He grumbles, his tail dropping heavily in the water to send a small wave up the opposite bank. In response, Wendy trills a higher note. Watching the interaction Lucy giggles.

Knowing one dragon and interacting with her is one thing but witnessing two of the great beasts interacting with each other is something else entirely. The way they act and react without moving much of their massive bodies leads the blonde to a theory that most of their communication happens telepathically, this heavily supported by the way they attempt to communicate with her through images.

She sets a hand on Wendy's snout, pausing the dragon's action of lifting her lips in what looks to be a playful snarl and turns to the new dragon.

"If I may ask, what is your name?"

Almost immediately she's hit with two different images. One being a figure playfully swimming in lava? While the other is of him soaring through a sky empty of clouds under a scorching sun.

Lucy pauses, arching an eyebrow at the dragon. "You swim in lava for fun?"

When he growls, leaning his large head over the stream to playfully snap at the sky dragon she gathers that the first image had been sent from Wendy as a form of teasing. The second image, however, she takes a second to decipher; adding the heat of the sun she feels bearing down on scales with the feeling of a harsh wind lifting his wings to come up with something she hopes is close to what they call him.

"He of the Summer Winds?"

 _Close enough_. She's surprised by the nudge of admittance, quickly adjusting her thought on how vain the creatures are if he so graciously allows the mistake.

Her stomach growls again, distracting her from her questions and he rumbles in amusement, an image of a bear eating a fish coming to mind. Lucy blushes, glaring at the dragon. "I am not a bear! I'm just hungry. Hell, I don't even know when the last time I ate was. Speaking of which," She glances at Wendy, remembering the sky dragon's deflection of her early question. "Are you the one who brought me here?"

A nudge of agreement.

"What happened? Why did you show up when you did?" She can ignore her hunger for the moment if she can get some answers. Gods, _her friends._ They must be worried to death about her by now.

Lucy facepalms. "What would I even tell them? 'Hi, guys, you'll never believe it but I was saved from being raped by my Ex by a dragon and he took me to his cave.'" Groaning, she falls back into Wendy's side. "Yeah, like that'll go over real well."

She's drawn from her dizzying thoughts by a clicking sound. Looking up she finds it's her new friend tapping his claws against the ground like a human would do with their fingers.

When he sees he has her attention he looks down the stream at his tail. Lucy follows his gaze, shocked to find the spike tail tip spearing several fish in one swing. He pulls it out of the water, pulling his tail up until the pile of fish is in front of Lucy and she grimaces.

"I don't know about you guys but I can't eat raw fish. Is there any way I could have a fire or something to cook one?"

Smoke begins dribbling out of his nose as he pulls his tail back, holding it away from her and the sky dragon; he puffs out a comparatively small flame, watching it catch on the fish then go out before he brings the tip back in front of her.

With a half grimace-half smile she takes one of the fish off the barb, marveling that it doesn't feel slimy like she had expected, not slimy or scaly, the blast having been hot enough to peel off the majority of the scales. The blonde looks up, meeting his eyes then brushes off some of the scale dust and takes a bite out of the belly of the fish. Besides the taste of charcoal, there is none and she swallows the bite with a grimace. Taking only a couple more bites to quiet her hunger she holds up the rest of the fish by its tail looking at Wendy.

"Do you want the rest of this one, Wendy? I can't eat anymore."

Thankfully the sky dragon rumbles in agreement, opening her mouth enough for Lucy to toss the remainder in her jaws. After Wendy tilts her head back to swallow the fish she wraps her tail around the blonde, lifting her over the stream to stand beside the fire dragon.

The blonde frowns in confusion, turning to look at the sky dragon only to find the dragon having a nearly complete telepathic conversation with the fire dragon. After they finish he huffs, flicking the tail-full of fish at her. Wendy trills an aggressive tune in return then snaps up the fish, getting up to disappear down another tunnel.

Now she's thoroughly confused. The dragon she had been getting along swimmingly with, in her opinion at least, has left her with the fire-breathing companion that saved her and kidnapped her to their nest they share with one other apparently really aggressive companion.

Deciding to get to the bottom of this conundrum she walks up to his snout, quickly setting a hand on the crimson scales before fear can get the better of her.

The rush of information that greets her is more than she can take. She stumbles backward, only the dragon catching her with his paw preventing her from falling into the stream. Lucy finds herself sitting on the ground, her head in her hands as she tries to absorb everything she had gleaned off of the dragon.

Most, if not all, of the images she had gathered from the dragon, are too jumbled for her to make out. The time of day or night, actions that aren't where they're supposed to be, flights that she knows she didn't experience but still somehow calls to her muscle memory.

The dragon huffs, leaning his head down to look at Lucy closer to her level and she shakes her head, her eyes meeting his.

"I wanna know what happened but it seems like I can't do the same with you that I do with Wendy. There's too much for me to handle."

Smoke rises from his nose, as close to an eye roll as she feels he will get. Thinking on it now, she sees her folly.

Animals, when they get bigger typically mean they're older so why wouldn't the same go for dragons? _Natsu_ must be older than Wendy, therefore wiser and more knowledgeable than the sky dragon.

Lucy smiles, the name she had picked for the dragon rolling around on her tongue.

The dragon grumbles a question at the thought and she gets up, careful not to touch him once more.

"It is a name that I'll be able to call you aloud. While He of the Summer Winds is a very handsome name that speaks of limitless power it is a mouthful. Like She of the Wild Skies has agreed to allow me to call her Wendy. It just makes it easier to talk with you."

She can't see the inner workings of his mind like she can with Wendy's, leaving her at a loss as to what may be going through his vast mind.

On a whim she steps closer, staring deeply into one of his eyes. "If you wish to know, Natsu means Summer so you won't be leaving your name behind, you'll actually just be picking up another."

While he thinks it over she looks up, through the hole in the ceiling curious about the icy walls. Instead, she finds the light has waned to what she guessed to be sun down. She hadn't thought so much time had passed since the sky dragon had brought her to the cavern.

The dragon rumbles, grabbing her attention again. As she turns to look at him she receives an agreement, making her smile.

 _ **XxX**_

She only has to follow her nose down one tunnel before she knows where to look. Pausing in a cavern with four branching tunnels She of the Wild Skies listens with both mind and ears for her brother.

When she finds the sound of rocks being chewed she turns to the tunnel to her left, quietly padding along the dark path until she reaches another cavern lit up in an eerie green light.

Before the sky dragon can enter the cavern, however, a low growl echoes off the walls followed shortly by a sharp blast of _Go away!_

Tail lashing in annoyance she glares at the dark gray-scale backside facing her.

 _No!_ She growls. _I will not turn away like some hatchling. Have you forgotten what tonight is?_

The gray dragon pauses in his chewing, turning his head to set a crimson eye on her. _Yes, I know. I will return to Moon's Cavern when that_ human _,_ He hisses his distaste for the word. _is gone._

 _Brother, you cannot deny Moon's call._ She ignores the sharp scale blades of his lashing tail and steps into the cavern. _That human is not like the others. She is nice, and sweet, and willing to trade information with us. If we're to learn about this new era we need to befriend a human._

He huffs, returning to the rock firmly gripped in his claws. Though, this time he chews a lot slower.

The sky dragon can see the thoughts turning over in his head, feel the call of Moon in his blood and bones just as she can in her own.

As a clump of iron breaks away from the rock his wings flare in indignation before folding back at his sides. _Very well,_ He rumbles, the sound similar to two rocks colliding. _I will follow you to Moon's Cavern_.

She knew that one was coming. No dragon can resist the call of Sun and Moon lest they lose their scales and become no more than worms in the soil. But as he snaps up the clump of iron, knocking the remainder of the rock into a wall she raises her head to look bigger then she actually is to the much larger drake.

 _And what about the human?_

He growls, shattering the clump in his teeth. _We will see what Brother has to say about her. You know the rules. It was his choice to bring her to the nest so he has to be the one to decide her fate._ Following the metal scaled drake into the tunnels, she hears him chuckle. _I hope he drowns her._

She of the Wild Skies growls, lashing her tail around to smack her brother in his side. Pride wells within her when the bigger drake yelps, turning an eye to her.

 _Watch it, Sister. Your tail may sting but mine will cut you from nose to tail._ She whips him again in retaliation then sprints forward, flaring a wing when she comes to the turn in the tunnel so she doesn't spin out.

Her much bigger brother, on the other hand slips across the cavern floor sliding into the opposite wall. The sky dragon laughs, easily outpacing him.

She might not be as big or strong as her brothers but even underground she's still much faster and more nimble then they are.

After a few more turns she slows down, her mind on the human her brother had brought to her two nights before. The human had been badly hurt, and by one of her own kind if her brother had been correct.

It's an act she couldn't dream of. Someone getting hurt while playing rough is understandable. Someone getting hurt on purpose? Inconceivable.

Though she has a feeling that she feels so harshly against the idea because of her ability. That may be why her morals are so much stricter than her brothers'.

 _What's the matter, Little Bird?_ She glances up, finding her brother standing beside her with a rare worried glance and she shakes her head.

 _It is nothing, Brother. Merely lost in the sky._

He chuckles, walking forward slowly. _That is nothing new with you. If your wings aren't then your head is._

Trilling in annoyance she catches up to him, having to turn her head up to actually look him in the eye. _I could say the same for you. If you eat any more rocks, you'll be too heavy to take off._

The drake growls, ducking his head to avoid a stalactite that he makes a note to tear down later. _Watch it, Sister or there will be rotten fish in your nest tonight._

She laughs, turning her head to push his shoulder. Remarkably she actually gets him to stumble sideways a step.

 _See how that ends up for you when you swallow a piece of marble again._

 _One time! That was one time and I didn't see it because it was embedded in the iron._ He snarls, glaring at her. When her laughing doesn't stop he marches ahead, leaving her to the darkness of the tunnel.

Quietly she continues on her walk, slowing when she nears the tunnel entrance to Moon's Cavern, the cavern she had left the human with He of the Scorching Winds.

In the time it took her to walk the tunnels down to her brother Sun's fire has fully gone out for the night, leaving Moon's light to begin to flood the cavern.

Glancing to the tunnels across the cavern she finds both He of the Scorching Winds and He of the Black Steel standing in the darkness waiting for her. Of course, they are. Never have either of them accepted Moon's Turn without the others.

 _Ready?_ At the question from her brother, she looks around the cavern, finding the human sitting by the stream turning between the three of them in confusion.

 _Ready._

 _ **XxX**_

Lucy looks between the three dragons, confused as to what is happening.

They're almost hiding in the darkness of the tunnels away from the moonlight. But that couldn't possibly be true...could it?

No, there's nothing in the myths about dragons being afraid of moonlight. Then again the myths also said they hoarded gold, were vicious, vain, and plain fire-breathing beasts.

These three are none of those things so she supposes they could be afraid of moonlight. But that leaves the question as to why?

Knowing Natsu and the other dragon—He of the Black Steel if she recalls—most likely won't answer her she looks to Wendy for answers.

She opens her mouth, the question on her tongue and stops. Why is she stopping? Probably because all three are slowly walking into the cavern and the moonlight.

As they flare their wings, turning their heads to look up at the full moon she's in awe of just how magnificent the beings are under the pale rays.

The baby blue in Wendy's feathers she had seen earlier grows darker, nearly navy blue while the white becomes blinding forcing her to look in another direction. Straight at the dark gray dragon she had noticed earlier before that massive headache paralyzed her.

Looking at him now, she understands where his name comes from. He's covered from head to tail in black steel like scales. Along his front and back legs, and his stomach they're layered to look chainmail made of links so small the holes are impossible to spot.

She has a feeling the locations are just that much harder to damage because of the fact.

Crimson eyes large enough to fit an entire car tire are shielded by a single large metal scale that fits over a wedge-shaped head like a helmet. Black marks edge off from the backs of his eyes in three long stripes.

His wings, to her shock, however, are most likely the strangest part of him. They're not like Natsu's or even Wendy's wings. No, these are shaped like several sword blades layered one over another as if they're sharp enough to cut something by themselves.

As the gleam off his scales brightens her eyes wander down his long tail, taking in the sight of the wide flat blades growing from it. Lucy has no doubt they're very sharp and that if he were to swing his tail the right way the appendage would become a flying double-sided ax with a dragon's strength behind it.

The brightness surrounding him becomes blinding and she turns to the final of three dragons.

With the way the moonlight lands upon Natsu, his scales don't glow with a blinding light like the others. They brighten like they're on fire, like the dragon himself is on fire.

She's stuck, mesmerized by the flames licking up his scales, taking him from her eyesight in the time it takes for her to breathe.

It seems like an eternity before the brightness in the cavern fades away, leaving Lucy to stare at the much smaller beings standing where the massive dragons had once stood.

In place of a semi truck sized crimson and black dragon now stands a human six foot at the shoulder with short spiked pink hair that seems to defy gravity. His face is still turned to the moon, his eyes closed but Lucy can see him smiling and in that smile she finds his teeth are slightly longer than human teeth, lending him the appearance of having fangs.

He wears a black vest with gold lining the edges, white harem pants tied off at his shins with black ties and a white scarf imprinted with a scale pattern similar to the scales that had lined the dragon's neck.

Perhaps, to her, the most disturbing features on him are the red scales that trail from black clawed hands up bare muscled arms. The scales continue up after that, appearing in large patches up his neck to his face then across his torso. From under the harem pants, they stretch down his legs to feet that look like miniature versions of the dragon's own hind legs.

Behind his back two large wings, maybe twelve foot wide stretch out on either side of him. They're almost exactly like the dragon's own wings, black ribs blending in with crimson scales closer to his body. The same can be said for the tail flashing smaller black horns in the moonlight.

It unnerves her, to think that the dragons she had met earlier have turned into these hybrid-like creatures and she turns around, her mouth falling open at the blue-haired teen standing in a similar position.

Though the teen is actually looking at her, giving her a look at the same pink eyes she had seen on the sky dragon. Not only that, but the snow-white wings slowly furling themselves behind her back as well.

White scales race up her body, more hidden behind the two-piece dress fitting to the teen with several well placed gold rings and ringlets. There's only a smattering of scales on her left cheek though, the majority of them leading from the small white claws of her hands and the smaller version of the sky dragon's back paws that are her feet. Behind her, moving slowly but steadily, the blonde spots a thin, whip-like tail.

She has a feeling that if the dragon wanted to she could very much use it like a whip to fight with.

Swallowing, Lucy turns to face the third dragon. Sure enough, he has changed as well.

About six foot maybe six and a half feet tall black unruly hair hangs off his head and down his back. His eyes are still crimson but they're not as malevolent as they had looked before, perhaps diminished by the amount of metal pierced through his face.

His eyebrows, both sides of his nose, his bottom lip, and several more on each of his ears gives Lucy the opinion he'd be more of a heavy metal punk than a dragon.

If it weren't for the large metal studs lining his arms and built into his hands. That and the twelve-foot long wingspan on the majorly sharp sword-like wings built into his back.

The same tail that she's thought would be dangerous with dragon strength now swings behind him freely, albeit a bit faster than the other dragons.

His scales race solely up his arms and his neck. She can't see anything of his legs with the long tan pants he wears. His feet, however, copy the others, taking on a smaller version of the metal dragon's hind feet as well. Similarly to the first one, he too wears no sleeves, though the coat he wears is lined around the collar and shoulders with more metal.

"Human?" Lucy jumps, turning to look over her shoulder. Seeing the teen leap across the six-foot-wide stream easily she crawls backward, trying to get away from the strange hybrid creature.

When the teen sees this she trills anxiously, stopping where she stands to look at her. "Human, it's alright. It's me. She of the Wild Skies."

"W-w-but?" Lucy is a stuttering mess. She's confused as to how the three massive dragons have turned into these creatures. The myths say nothing about hybrids!

"That's enough!" The teen stops at the sharp growl, both she and Lucy turning to look at the crimson hybrid. The crimson hybrid stalks forward with a steady stride, his wings furled tightly against his back. "Sister, Brother, you know what you must do before Moon takes her Turn again."

The teen frowns, glancing at Lucy. "But, Brother, what about Human?"

Standing in front of the teen Lucy can see his jade eyes clearly in the moonlight.

"I'll take care of the human. I brought her here, I'll take care of her. The rules of the nest must be followed to protect us and our guard."

She nods. "Of course. See you soon, Brother."

"Goodbye, She of the Wild Skies." He nods, watching her spread her wings to take off.

With only a glance at the metal hybrid, he too spreads his sword like wings and disappears through the hole in the cavern. Only after they're both out of sight does the crimson hybrid turn back to her, his expression softening with worry.

He sits down, his tail curling around so he doesn't sit on it and he frowns. "Lucy?"

She sits up, eyeing him carefully. Earlier she had translated a question through the dragon's telepathy and told him her name. Only the dragon knew her name. So does that mean this is the same dragon?

Only one way to find out.

"Natsu?" Her question doesn't come out as more than a whisper but when he grins she knows he heard it.

He raises a claw, tapping his chest. "It's me, He of the Scorching Winds. I apologize if we scared you but when Moon calls for her Turn we must listen."

The blonde shakes her head, unbelieving of what she's hearing. "Moon? Turn? What?"

He must find it funny because he chuckles. The laughter earns a glare from Lucy and he shakes his head. "It's a long story and we only have until tomorrow night before we return to our full sizes."

Oddly, she wants to hear it. She wants to know how they're able to turn from dragon to hybrid and why they're the way they are.

Sensing her intrigue he sighs, casting a glance to the sky overhead before looking back at her. "You wanna know how you ended up here, yes?" She nods. "I'll tell you then I'll tell you our story."

She perks up, sitting up and crossing her legs under her to get comfortable. When she's ready he begins.

"Every full moon my siblings and I change from our full size to this size. Three nights before we're to change we take turns scouting the land nearby to see what interests us to explore while in our half size. This time it was my turn. As I flew over the caves you humans live in, I flew lower to see what I could find to explore. I didn't find anything and turned back, ready to return to the nest when I heard a scream."

Lucy tenses, remembering the moment. She shudders, looking away from the dragon and he frowns.

"I won't continue if you don't want."

She shakes her head. "No, continue. I don't like remembering it but I need to know what happened."

Looking her over with a sharp eye he easily picks up on her body language. When he determines she's telling the truth he nods.

"By the time Moon rises that high in the sky normally the humans are inside and the night is for us and the night animals so when I heard the scream my instincts said something was wrong. I decided to go look and I found you and the other human. When I landed I think I spooked him because he took off and left you injured."

The blonde smiles grimly. "I need to thank you for that." He tilts his head in confusion. "You wouldn't understand but you saved me from worse than what Dan gave me."

Seeing he's still confused she folds her arms over her chest, her nails digging into her skin. "Natsu, how do dragons reproduce?"

"They find a mate who is agreeable in strength and characteristics, then both stay together until the eggs hatch." The crimson hybrid states simply. Then he frowns. "May I ask why it's important?"

Lucy pauses, considering the best way to reply. How exactly is she supposed to say that humans have sex for fun and that her Ex wouldn't take no for an answer when she refused? "When humans reproduce there are two ways it can happen. By force or by agreement. In our culture reproducing by force is looked down upon, those who do it often getting into serious trouble. That night, if you hadn't popped in, Dan would've 'mated' with me by force and I would've broken not just physically but mentally as well."

"What?!" His wings flare in anger and she lurches back, rapidly reminding herself this is still an extremely strong being that can wield fire. He snarls, jumping to his feet. "That is impossible! How could that scaleless worm be so cruel?!"

Scaleless worm? She's gonna take a guess and say that's not a compliment.

"Shell-bound scaleless pond scum." He spits. "May Sun sentence him to the darkest parts of Moon's realm for all eternity."

Wow. She really should remember these. If she gets back to her laptop and her writing, these curses will be great to add flavor to her characters. And is that fire flaring up his arms?

"Natsu?" Turning when he hears his human name, he suddenly remembers that there is someone else there and that he can't, in fact, fly off to go find the human he spooked that night and burn him to ash. To think a human would be so willing to destroy something as bright as his human is preposterous.

Wait. _His human? Where did that come from?_

He brushes aside the thought for the moment, looking into the blonde's amber eyes. "Why are you so mad at my Ex? I mean I know I am but why are you?"

He sighs, coming back to sit in front of her again.

"In dragon culture, Drakaina must pick their drake to mate with. If the Drakaina does not like the drake then he has no right to mate with her. It is hard for me to think that a male human would go against the female's wishes to mate."

Lucy smiles. "Humans are much the same way. For most people, if their partner doesn't want to then they won't. But there are some like my Ex that refuse to take no for an answer and try to take what they want. That's why I am grateful for you showing up."

The pink-haired dragon takes in the information then looks her in the eye. "Would you like to hear the rest?" Receiving a nod and finding nothing to say different in her body language he takes a deep breath.

"After the scaleless Húndàn ran and left you behind I wasn't sure what to do. I knew I couldn't just leave you lying there but I also couldn't walk up to another human and get them to notice you. They would've just screamed and run the other way. So I did what my instincts were telling me to do and I grabbed you and returned to the nest. My sister," He pauses, unsure of the sky dragon's human name and Lucy arches an eyebrow.

"You mean Wendy?"

He frowns in confusion. "Is that what you call her?" She nods and his expression clears. "Then Wendy." The way he says it sounds like he's tasting the word, trying to get used to saying it. After a moment he shakes his head, continuing with the tale. "Wendy has an ability like my brother and I do. I can command fire, my brother eats metal and use its properties, and our sister has the ability to heal almost any kind of creature from any kind of injury or sickness."

Lucy visibly perks up, looking at him in awe. "Is that why when your brother gave me that really bad headache it went away when Wendy made that humming noise?"

"Yes," He confirms, happy that she's picking up on these details so well. "When she's in her full form she can heal anything under her touch with her hum. That's why I brought you back to her. I knew she could heal you. Three days passed since that night and you didn't wake up until today. Because of that I was busy planning with my brother and was surprised when I entered Moon's Cavern to find you had woken up."

Hearing that she hesitates, looking away from him for a second before glancing back. "You said to Wendy and your brother that you would take care of me. What did you mean?"

He winces, hooking his claws onto his scarf. "A rule of our nest is that if we bring any living beings back, we have to decide their fate. Most often they're either food or small animals that Wendy heals and releases in the woods further down the mountain. I wasn't thinking when I brought you back because you now pose a threat to us. If I let you go back to the humans' caves then more of you would come and we'd have to flee except we can't flee because these caves have been our home for nearly a millennium."

"Then are you going to kill me?" Lucy's voice drops to a whisper and his head shoots up, his hands stretched in front of him.

"No! You have to trust me. Killing you is the last thing I want to do. It's nice having a new mind in the nest and learning new ideas but," He hesitates. "I have to pick something. I know you most likely have a family back in your caves and I don't want to keep you from them but I also can't risk mine."

She snorts, taking him by surprise. The grimace on her features bewildering him further. "I don't have any family in town. If anything I moved there to escape them and my Ex. There are a few people in town that I consider close friends but other than that I really have nothing to my name." She looks him in the eye. "I would like to stay here with you and your family. For some reason I see more eye to eye with you three then I have with any person in my life."

Everything about this human has constantly broadsided him. From her outgoing personality to her courage in willing to approach he and his siblings—his brother being a wing biter notwithstanding. Closing his mouth he nods. "I thought you would want to be back with your own kind, not remaining with us in our nest but if you wish I'm sure I could talk to my siblings."

The smile he receives is well worth the fight he knows will be coming from his brother. Then something occurs to him and he pauses, his brows furrowing. "But won't you need stuff from your cave in order to live among us?"

Realizing it's something she hadn't thought about she sucks her bottom lip into her mouth, worrying at the skin in thought. "That is true. And I'll have to let my landlady know I'm leaving my apartment, say goodbye to my friends." She groans, falling backward onto the ground. Her eyes land on the bright white moon overhead and she sighs.

"I'll need to go back into town for a little while to wrap up things before I just disappear off the map for good."

Nearly distracted as he is by her act, her words don't process through his mind as quickly as they should. When they do he comes up with a plan, one that will afford him time to pound the idea into his brother's metal-plated head and her time to take care of her own necessities.

"There is something you could do." She sits up, eyeing him curiously.

"And what would that be?"

Sun and Moon, he hasn't felt this nervous since he first took over leading their nest. Gathering his courage he sighs, reaching down to pick at one of the spikes on his tail.

"Tomorrow night after my siblings and I change back, I could take you back down to the human caves and leave you there until the night before the next full moon. That will be the next time I'm flying over that way before Moon grants her Turn."

Shocked by the admission her jaw drops open. When she finds him speaking with complete sincerity she frowns. "But what about your nest's safety?"

In return, he grins. "I think I can trust you enough to know you're not gonna drag a hundred humans to the nest." She blushes and he grins, getting to his feet. "Come on, why don't I take you on a tour of the caves?"

Lucy easily takes his clawed hand, marveling at the scaled texture as he pulls her to her feet. She follows him to one of the tunnels then pauses at the edge of the moonlight.

Natsu, already several feet in the tunnel, turns back. Like with his dragon form his jade eyes glow in the shadows of the tunnel and she frowns. "Natsu, I can't see in the dark like you can. How will I know where to go without tripping over my feet?"

He holds up his hand, drawing her eyes to the limb. Embers appear near his wrist before they ignite, sending his hand up in flames. When he sees her expression he grins.

"Fire ability, remember? In this form, I'm able to form flames in my hands and use them. Now come on, there's one cavern, in particular, I think you'll like and I wanna show you before my brother gets back."

Together they step into the tunnel, Lucy staying close to the fire dragon and flame, the only light in the otherwise pitch black hallway. By the time the last of the moonlight disappears from the tunnel Lucy decides she really does not like the silence of the tunnels.

Before, she had had Wendy's thoughts to keep her distracted but now, with just her and the fire dragon's footsteps to keep them company it feels almost too quiet. Like a storm is about to fall upon them. So she looks to her companion with a question from earlier heavily on her mind.

"Natsu, you said you were gonna explain why you and your siblings change on the full moon. Could you tell me please?"

He chuckles, glancing at her. "I did, didn't I?" When she nods he returns to looking forward, his brows furrowing in thought. "I guess I should start at the beginning."

"My sister, my brother, and I aren't actually related. We weren't born to the same parents—not that we knew our parents anyway. Back when I was about seven summers, my brother was maybe thirteen, and Wendy was no older than three or four there was a war that raged across the land. All three of us ended up orphaned because of it and we surely would've died had it not been for the dragons of old. Our dragons taught us their ways, enhanced the minute amounts of magic in our veins until we were what the world called Dragon Slayers. But to the dragons, we were merely human kin that smelled of and acted like dragons."

He pauses, glancing over to see if Lucy has any questions. The blonde, however, knows better than interrupt a story. The more she stays quiet the more details she'll be able to learn of the three.

"As such, we took on their culture, their way of life, and lived as they did. One being that we praise Sun and Moon for their guidance of the earth and their watch over our kind. After all, Sun warms the earth with his fire and Moon gives us our power, our duty, and our wings. One day, not long before the war ended Moon called all dragon kind to an inactive volcano that has long since fallen into the sea."

They turn down another tunnel, this one stopping at a set of human-sized steps carved into the stone. He steps down first, turning to offer her a hand. "Careful, Brother needs to reinforce the steps again."

As he guides her down the stairs he starts to speak again, his voice a low tone echoing from the walls.

"When the last dragon had landed she appeared before us, the spirit of the great white dragon, Moon who had protected the nightly earth from Sun's hot fire appeared before us and beseeched us for help. She knew and still knows that the history of the world should not be repeated and the only way for that happen is for it to be saved for a time in the future when it will be needed again. That is what she sets us as dragons to take care of. She granted the humans the ability to turn into their dragon skin and the dragons of old the ability to become human at their own desire."

When he falls quiet, Lucy frowns, looking up to see his jade eyes glazed with images of the past. "Natsu?"

The dragon shakes his head then looks up, smiling sadly. "Sorry, got distracted. Anyway, Sun was not happy that Moon had set Dragons this task and when she chanted the spell to allow our switch, Sun chanted one of his own. He cursed us to live long lives, either we die by sword or illness but never will we die of old age. The second part of his curse has been the worst for dragonkind. It sentenced us to forever be allowed to change into our second form only on the night when Moon has her eye completely set on earth."

He swallows, his eyes landing on a crevice carved carefully into the rock wall. Lucy follows his gaze, curious to see what holds his attention but more interested in another question that comes to mind.

"What's happened to the other dragons?"

Natsu stops by the crevice, turning to look her in the eye. "There are others out there, none have died in the last fifty summers or so, but no one knows where their nest is located. Because of how humans have developed we've been forced to completely hide our presence from sight. The only way we will ever truly know how many other dragons are around is if Moon calls us to gather again and that will only happen when she desperately needs our help. Now, are you ready to see what I wanted to show you?"

She nods and he slips through the crevice. Lucy follows after him, finding nothing but darkness until the fire dragon gathers the flame around his fist into a ball and chucks it at the wall over her head. On reflex she ducks, turning to watch as the flame begins to race along a rut carved into the wall.

As it travels the room begins to light up, her eyes going wide at the rows upon rows of books standing in the semi-dark room.

Natsu chuckles. "Moon set us with the task to collect and protect the history of the world. What better way then the accounts of those who saw it?"

Slowly, she walks up to a shelf, her eyes skimming over titles she recognizes and some she doesn't. She sets a hand on the binding of a book and frowns. "But I thought dragons only collect gold?"

"And some do." She turns, finding him smiling softly. "That's where the myths come from about dragons and gold. When Moon gave her instructions some dragons took it a different way and collected gold items. Each item has a story and so the dragons thought the stories needed to be saved. As for the myths, they came about when humans stumbled upon the dragon's nest."

Lucy can see where the missing piece is in the picture and she adds quietly, "So what they took for greed was actually the dragons doing what Moon had asked them too and protecting our history."

He nods. "Yes. But most dragons, like my siblings and I chose to save the books. We can't read what they say but it doesn't matter to us since we're following Moon's command."

She looks at him with something akin to horror. "You can't read what you collect?"

"No," The dragon shakes his head. "Our dragon parents never taught us how and even if we wanted to, the words on the paper wouldn't make sense to us. Over the centuries our eyes have changed to be better at looking at details at a distance or spotting enemies or walking the darkest of tunnels without a light. No longer can we see the words as nothing more than scribbles."

It doesn't make sense to her. They can't read the poems and ballads they've spent so much time collecting? They'll never know the tales of Odysseus or Brutus' betrayal of Caesar! Never can they know of the bad luck that befalls the players of Hamlet or even the massive parties of East Egg held by Jay Gatsby. Who knows what else lies in the massive archive the dragons have stored that they'll never know of.

 _This will not do._

Determined, Lucy pulls several books she knows she can read off the shelves and returns to find him looking at her in surprise. "You might not be able to read but I can."

Numbly, he allows her to pass him back into the hall before he realizes what is happening and quickly extinguishes the flames.

Sliding through the crevice he finds her leaning against a rock waiting for him with a grin. "What are you waiting for? Let's get back to others!"

He laughs, shaking his head as he ignites his fist. "You, Lucy, are one weird human."

With her excitement catching onto him, he leads her back to Moon's Cavern via a quicker route than the one he first lead her down.

As they approach the cavern he can already pick up his siblings' individual scents, his brother's that of cold iron and his sister's of a fresh spring breeze. He knows that at least his brother scents his approach from the grumbling he hears echoing lightly off the tunnel walls.

At last, the moonlight begins to spill into the tunnel. Lucy notices the difference and picks up speed, the books clutched close to her chest.

She bursts into the cavern just as Natsu's flame is lighting the edges of the tunnel. He extinguishes the flame, coming to lean against the tunnel entrance while Lucy runs up to his sister.

"Wendy! Wendy, is it true you can't read?"

Suddenly he feels bad for not reigning his human in sooner. The wild-eyed look his sister is showing tells him that she was caught off guard by the sudden question.

His sister trills anxiously, her wings fluttering behind her. "Yes. My brothers and I were never taught."

"Well, tonight's your lucky night. I get to read to y'all." His human grins, looking back at him before holding out one of the books she holds from the cavern.

Despite their excitement, Natsu tenses when his brother walks over to his human and their sister. As familiar as he is with the metal drake he knows the drake's attitude can change from wit sharp enough to slice rock to his scales doing the slicing. He doesn't want his human hurt by his brother's fickle attitude.

"Bunny girl, what makes you think we wanna hear what's in between the leather?"

To the fire dragon's surprise, his brother is civil, even teasing the blonde from the looks of it.

She frowns, arching an eyebrow. "Bunny girl?"

The metal drake grins, ruffling the hair on her head being careful of his claws. "Because you're soft and adorable. Why else would my idiot brother decide to nab you?"

Natsu can't help it, he chuckles at the glare she throws his brother as he stalks closer.

"Okay, Metalhead, I think you made your point. Why don't we head to our nests and Luce can read for us?"

Lucy looks at him, her eyes wide. "Luce? Where'd that come from?"

He shrugs. "I don't know. It just feels right."

The blonde looks thoughtful, glancing up at him before looking at the books in her arms.

"I kinda like it. No one besides my friend Levy has a nickname for me." She smiles. "It just goes to show I'm making the right choice by staying here."

When his brother tenses Natsu sighs. He had hoped he'd have at least the night to plan out his attack and defense routes before telling his brother after Lucy had returned to her cave.

Apparently, he doesn't even have the hour. Great Moon above, help him survive the night.

"Sister," His sister trills a response, her eyes still on the book Lucy is holding. "Why don't you lead Lucy back to our nests?"

She must hear a note in his voice for she looks up, glancing between him and his brother before nodding.

"Sure. Come on, Lucy, I'll show you the softest spot in my nest to sleep in near the fire." With that she leads the blonde down another tunnel, their overlapping voices echoing off the walls.

Once they're gone the metal drake turns on him. "Why in Sun's fire would you invite her to stay in the nest, Brother?"

He growls, snapping his jaw closed hard enough for the sound to echo. "What was I supposed to do, _Brother_? I couldn't exactly just _kill_ her!"

Natsu pauses, looking down the tunnel after the girls. "Look, she's smart. She has no family to go back to, and honestly, I quite like talking to her. It's nice to have her around."

"You like her." It's not a question but he can hear the shock in his brother's voice. He nods. He won't deny it, there's something about the blonde that intrigues him. "Brother, you can't like her."

His head snapping around, he glares at the metal drake. "And why can't I?"

In response, his brother sputters. "Salamander, she is a _human._ "

That has him snarling. "So what if she is? Has it been so long that you have forgotten we all were once human?"

The metal drake groans, his head dropping back to stare at Moon, the goddess now beginning to descend toward the horizon. "Moon, help me before I tear his wings off." When he gets no response he turns back the fire dragon. "She's your responsibility. If something happens, our Turns interrupted, collectibles get burned, and I mean anything then I'm snapping her neck and dropping her in the lava pool."

Natsu knows nothing like that will happen. He's seen too much in her head to know she won't purposefully do anything of the like but...to hear his brother conceding on such an important matter means more to him then he'd ever dare express to the metal drake.

"Thank you, Brother." He grins, his tail lashing behind him in excitement.

His brother merely rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Come on, we need to be up by the time the sun rises to help the wolf pack on the northern side of the mountain hunt deer."

Together they walk down the tunnel, the silence between a common companion to the sibling drakes.

As they approach the next cavern where the fire burns as hot as when he'd lit it the day before Natsu grins, hearing his human's sweet voice echo. Though the voice stops when they step out into the cavern and his sister and human look up.

Lucy smiles from where she sits beside the sky dragon. "Hi, I was just explaining to Wendy the different content of the books for her to decide which one she wants to hear.

The drakes look to their sister. "Which one did you pick, Sis?"

The sky dragon trills, holding up a book with a baby blue cover. "Lucy says it's called Greedy Dragon!"

His human nods, gently easing the book from her claws. "Aye, and it's by Moeruhoshi." Pulling open the cover she sifts through a couple pages. When she finds the one she's looking for she looks up, her eyes drifting from the metal dragon sprawled in a nest of folded metal plates and piled grass chewing on a piece of rock to the fire dragon sitting in a hole dug out of the rock and lined with grass and evergreen fir needles, looking at her avidly.

She ducks her head, her eyes returning to the book.

"Fiore was a modern country that thrived with Etherion in the air, flourishing in its people and granting…"

* * *

 **Before y'all start rioting I did get permission by Moeruhoshi to use an excerpt of her story in this. That and I promised a shameless plug _go look at her stories because she is awesome_.**

 **Legit. Not lying. Why are you still here? _GO LOOK AT HER STORIES_. That said I'll see y'all tomorrow with another one shot.**

 **#sorrynotsorry #shamelessplug #GottaloveMoe #Herwritingrocks**

 **Message from Grizzly's "Muse": I was going to choose a story that was a crackship in order to irritate Grizz but she picked something else out before I could. Oh well. Maybe next time if the opportunity comes up, I will. Hehehehehehe**

 **#sorrynotsorry #Grizzlyloveshermuse #derp**

 **Sooo, me and the wonderul She-Devil are back at it with bringing amazing oneshots for your viewing pleasure...in the midst of house sitting for my sister from another mother who happens to be out state for the same week. Woohoo Fate! Summer, house sitting, NaLu week. Torture...LOVE IT!**

 **Anyway it is 4 am, I have not slept, instead choosing to binge watch House of all shows, so I'll let you go and return to the awesome sarcasm that is Dr. Gregory House.**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


	3. Sanctum

**Good morning y'all! So before I let you run into today's story can I just say that when I started writing this one I had no clue it was gonna end up twenty thousand word long? Or that I was gonna have so much fun writing NaLu like this? I mean originally it was supposed to be Lucy the nun and Natsu the demon but then well it turned into this. Anyway, go read and I'll see y'all later.**

 **Summary: Demons are cruel, heartless beings that walk Earthland to spread evil throughout the land. At least that's what Lucy was raised to believe. But when a demon comes crashing into her garden, she learns there's more than meets the eye, particularly when it comes to the demon everyone claims is the end of the world.**

* * *

Day 2: Sanctum

Icy shards nearly a foot long rain from the sky. Midnight black wings curl inward, sending their owner into a spiral dive to avoid the deadly projectiles.

Some still hit their mark and he bellows in pain, throwing his wings wide to pull out of his dive. He's thankful his wings are for the most part uninjured. Without them, he'd be done for. However, he can't say the same for the rest of his body.

High enough in the sky to be out of reach of most of his opponent's attacks he hovers in the air, turning to look at said opponent standing on the ground. He knows he needs to flee, needing to escape before his opponent can finally bring him down. With one final farewell to the opponent he had called a friend for the longest time, he holds out his clawed hands, his scaled face turning to the heavens.

"Sun above, lend me your fire. Rain down upon these grounds! Hell's Wrath!"

The dark thunderous clouds above begin to turn red, the edges turning to the color of blood as large drops of fire rain from the skies. Hearing his friend, nay his _enemy_ yell in pain he turns and flees to the mountain range in the south. There are caves there that he knows the dragons once used that he can hide in while he heals.

"Damn you E.N.D.! When I get my hands on you, you'll regret ever being born!"

 _But I wasn't born._ The demon thinks sadly, his heart breaking at the thought of yet another friend being stolen from him. _I was cursed for being who I was raised to be._

 _ **XxX**_

On a mountainside, several large trees tower above a small cottage, the massive canopies above hiding it from view at a distance.

Beside the small cottage sits a garden meticulously taken care of and groomed until the plants within stand tall and healthy in the shafts of sunlight breaking through the tree canopies. Among the neat and weedless rows, a small form sits hunched over a growing tomato plant softly humming. Blonde hair falls around her heart-shaped face, cutting out the area around her as she works so tenderly on the garden.

When she's satisfied with the budding tomato plant she stands up, leaning backward until she hears her back crack before picking up her basket of vegetables and turning to the fence surrounding the garden patch. As she approaches the small wooden gate set between two thick sticks sturdily set in the ground she smiles, cooing at the baby blue and white cat sitting on one fence post.

"Hi, Happy, where'd you go this morning?"

The blonde pauses in the open gateway, waiting for the cat to leap on her shoulder before closing the gate back and walking up the stone-lined path to the cottage. In answer the cat purrs, rubbing his cheek against hers.

When she approaches the door she smiles, reaching down to grab the dead rabbit sitting in another basket by the door. "Was it you who killed the rabbit this time or Plue?" The cat meows, leaping off the woman's shoulder as she steps into the cottage and she shakes her head. "Happy, you know you can't keep stealing from Plue. What if he decides to come after you one day?"

She steps over to the pot quietly bubbling away over the fire, laughing when she hears the cat hiss in distaste. After she stirs the pot she turns to the rabbit, cleaning it with an efficiency belying many years at the skill. Happily setting the innards in the bowl Happy is sitting beside on a high shelf she rolls up the fur, tucking it away to clean the next day before going about rinsing the meat in a pot of water and dropping the diced chunks in the stew pot.

As is typical of her day she starts to hum, going about cleaning up the small cottage as the stew starts to smell more of rabbit then vegetables.

"I'm glad you two found that rabbit though. I'll need the fur to make a new pair of gloves before winter if we're to make the trek down to the river for salmon this year." Happy's ears perk up and she chuckles. "Yes, Happy. I decided that we'll go salmon fishing again this year. The salmon lasted us so long last time that I'm gonna see about getting some extra time down there. But that also means we won't have time to set too many rabbit traps so whatever rabbits you two bring back are gonna be important."

Once satisfied with the cleanliness of the cottage she sits in a rocking chair by the fire, glancing out the window in enough time to see the sunset. She sighs, picking up a needle, thread, and a small strip of leather.

"The storm is gathering." Pulling the string taught, she glances up when she feels the rocking chair bounce to find the blue cat sitting on the back of it. "I'm sure you can feel it too. The trees, the other animals, even the bushes are whispering about it. Something big is coming." Happy meows and she ties off the last stitch. Biting the string to break it, she closes her eyes, focusing on the leather in her hands. When a small shock hits her fingers she smiles looking at the cat.

"Alright, Happy, your collar is finished. Let's see if the runes work." In answer the cat leaps into her lap, turning to face the fire while she ties the strap of leather around his neck. As she ties the last knot she murmurs under her breath and a small golden light takes over the runes, turning the stitching into solid lettering.

Happy turns to look at her, his eyes lidded halfway and she arches an eyebrow. "Well? Go ahead and say something."

"Nǐ wàngle zàicì tiáozhěng fú wén."

The blonde groans, facepalming. "Son of a half-troll."

Grinning sheepishly she quickly takes off the collar then gets up, walking over to a book sitting on the other side of the fire. Happy follows, leaping up onto the counter beside the thick book as she flips through the pages.

"I've really gotta remember that last rune. Well," Finding the page she glares at the cat. "you could also not destroy your collar every couple moons. You know it takes a week to fix it and even then we end up going through this every time."

When the cat merely gives her a sarcastic glare in return she smirks, wiggling her fingers at him. "Then how about this? If you destroy this collar before winter no fish until next summer." Happy gives a loud _meow_ in shock and promptly falls off the counter leaving the blonde to a fit of laughter as she walks back to the rocking chair to grab the needle and thread.

Returning to the book she runs a finger along the page until she finds the rune then sticks the needle into the collar, expertly weaving the thread to alter a rune already set in the leather. In the time it takes for her to do this Happy shakes himself of any dirt and leaps back onto the counter, sitting beside the book to watch her intently. After she ties off the string again, she returns the leather to his neck, once more muttering the spell under her breath as she ties the last knot on the collar. This time when it flashes yellow the cat purrs.

"Thank you, Lucy." She smiles hearing the childlike voice again and rubs his head.

"You're very welcome, Happy. Just remember what I said. If you destroy it again then no fish until summer."

He groans, stretching until his claws dig into the edge of the counter. "That's not fair! It wasn't my fault my collar got ruined this time."

Lucy giggles, moving to check on the stew again. "Sure. Just like it wasn't your fault it was ruined when you decided to play hide and seek with Lycan's pack further down the mountain."

"It wasn't!" He whines, leaping up onto the shelf where a pile of old furs sits. "His mate was the one who decided she wanted to play 'catch the cat.'"

The blonde only rolls her eyes, dishing herself a bowl of rabbit stew before settling into the rocking chair again.

"If you would just listen when I tell you not to play with Lycan's pack nothing like that would happen."

Happy _harrumphs_ , turning to lay with his back to her. She shakes her head, setting the bowl down to walk up to the pouting cat. She smiles softly, running a hand up and down his side.

"Happy, I worry about you. That's why I don't want you doing anything too crazy like playing with wolves that think you're dinner. You and Plue are all I have and what with Plue spending more time in the woods lately I don't want to lose you too."

The cat sighs, turning to set his head firmly in her hand. "I'm sorry, Lushi. I guess I never thought of it like that."

"It's okay, Happy, just promise to be more careful in the future."

He purrs, the sound vibrating her hand. "I promise, I'll be more careful and avoid the wolf packs when I go out."

Lucy nods, her hand falling to her side. "Good, now why don't you come on down, I think there's still some smoked fish leftover."

His ears perk up and he stands. "Really? I thought that was all gone at the beginning of spring."

She grins, walking closer to the front door where several baskets sit beside cupboards.

"We'll just have to see now won't we?"

Leaping off the shelf Happy trots to the opposite end of the counter the book rests on, watching Lucy kneel and sort through the baskets.

After a minute she pulls out a rectangular basket made of reeds woven tightly together with a piece of leather tied tightly over the top of it. When she tries to undo the knot she scowls, huffing as she settles back on her legs.

"What's the matter, Lucy?"

The blonde pushes a piece of hair out of her face out of annoyance and gestures to the basket. "The knot's too tight."

"Do you want me to cut it?" He raises a paw, his claws extending to emphasize the question and she shakes her head, rising to her feet.

"No, it's a good cord I don't want to lose. I'm gonna see if Grandpa left a spell in his book I can use." As she says this she returns to the book, flipping through some of the pages.

Happy tilts his head, remaining in his spot. "If you don't find one then do you want me to cut it?"

She chuckles, pausing on a page. "Yes, Happy, if I can't find a spell then you can cut it." She hums, her finger running down the page and she frowns. "Huh, it says here he found three different ways to do the same thing. There's jiě kāi which means untie, kāisuǒ which is unlock, then dǎkāi which means open."

"If there's so many then which one will you choose?"

Lucy shrugs, turning to look at both the cat and the basket. "All we can do is trial and error. Though I think we should go with the one that sounds like it's more for knots then unlocking a door, eh?"

When he nods she brings up her right pointer finger, inhaling slowly as she watches a golden spark appear above the tip of it. Exhaling she points it at the tie of the basket.

"Jiě kāi!"

For a second the knot doesn't move then the magic takes effect and the tie unravels itself, the rope falling to the floor. Lucy grins, turning to Happy in shock.

"Happy I did it!" The cat yowls his agreement and Lucy darts forward, lifting him up by his armpits to dance around the cottage. "I did it, Happy, I did it!"

After a minute they calm down and she returns him to the counter, kneeling in front of the basket once more. She rolls back the leather on top, grateful to find it still in good shape then looks inside grinning when she finds what she had been looking forward. The blonde pulls out the last handfuls, pushing the basket back against the wall before standing and setting the brown bits on the counter in front of the blue cat. "Here, Happy, eat up. We deserve to celebrate after that victory." He purrs rubbing against her hand.

Once he sets into the jerky-like fish she returns to the rocking chair, picking up her bowl of semi-warm soup to begin eating as well.

The companionable silence that settles over the small cottage is one the duo is more than used to and so they let it lie. Even after they finish eating, they go about their business is silence; Lucy removing the pot from over the fire so it'll stay warm but not burn and Happy leaping from shelf to shelf to ensure all is quiet in the forest surrounding their home. When Lucy slips off her moccasins and begins changing out of her hide pants and long sleeve into a slim soft leather nightdress, Happy leaps from a shelf onto the bed of furs to the right of the fire, curling into a specific tan fur he'd claimed as his years before. The blonde smiles, leaning down to curl herself around him, her front to the fire still burning bright.

 _ **XxX**_

He's almost there. His internal compass is never wrong. Now if only he can find the strength to _get_ there.

Having hit the foothills of the range by sundown it shouldn't be much further but it feels as if he's flying from one end of the world to the other. His wounds are getting worse, his stomach is empty from so many days without a meal, and now he fears he won't make it to greet Sun on his trip over the horizon.

He snarls, his tail lashing through the skies behind him.

It's all _their_ fault. If they had just stayed away and left him alone he'd still have his family, his friends, and his old life. This Sun damned war never would've started in the first place.

His wing beat stutters and for a few seconds he begins to fall before he recovers. Forcing himself back into the sky, he looks over the mountains, quietly cursing Moon for not allowing him to use her light. He shakes his head. It feels as if his world is spinning. _Maybe I was hit worse than I thought._

As much as it's not a thought or a trouble he needs right now, it is something pressing he needs to worry about.

Angling his wings back he slows to a hover, one clawed hand coming to rest against the large cut in his side as jade eyes scan the forest below for the tell-tale sign of a cave. His world begins spinning faster and faster until… his wings crumple and he turns over a headlong fall.

 _ **XxX**_

Happy is nearly asleep, listening to Lucy's steady heartbeat as she slumbers when his ear twitches picking up on the sound of wings too large for a bird. Blearily he lifts his head, his ears tuning into the sound of branches breaking overhead. He sits up, running a paw over his eyes to claw away the sleep then carefully climbs out from his place against the blonde's stomach. Beneath the crackle of the fire, the sound of Lucy's heartbeat, and the noises of the night animals he hears something else altogether...The whisper of the forest, calling to him and his protector.

The storm it had been whispering of since the start of spring has fallen.

Hearing that jerks him from his stupor and he races for the shelf under the window facing the garden, leaping the four-foot height with ease to stare out into the darkness. At first he sees nothing, even with his ability to see at night, but then he turns to look in the garden. When he sees the mass in the garden, he gasps in shock. His ears swivel to the form laying in a small crater in their garden, listening intently until he finds a heartbeat and leaps off the shelf. He runs back to the blonde, putting his paws on her shoulder to shake her.

"Lucy, wake up!"

Her eyes blink open after a minute and she sits up. "Happy? What's wrong?"

"Something big fell in the garden." The blue cat drops down, his tail snapping to point at the window.

She frowns, looking at the window. Finding nothing but darkness from her angle she gets up, grabbing her pants.

"Can you tell what it is? Is it alive?"

Happy leaps back into the window, his ears angling toward the being. What he hears concerns him even further when he finds the heartbeat slower than it was just minutes before. "I can't tell what it is but its heartbeat is slowing down."

When she hears this she rushes to the door, throwing over her shoulder, "Grab one of your pellets and get out here on the double. I have a feeling I'll need your strength."

He jumps off the shelf under the window up to the shelf with his bowl and small bed and paws a small pack from under the leathers. Nosing aside the layers he snaps up a small green pellet then jumps off the shelf. As he runs out the door the white fur on his shoulders begins to shift, expanding out on both sides of his body. His torso and front legs begin to shorten, his front claws growing longer while his back legs shorten, becoming thicker with muscle. His light blue fur darkens, outlining the pair of white wings sprouting from his back.

Now running solely on his back paws he flaps his wings, flying over the railing of the porch to hover above the blonde kneeling beside the being in the garden.

Lucy exhales, a hand only a couple inches above the black figure. "Happy, get me a torch, the moonlight isn't strong enough to see in."

He nods, his wings flapping to keep him up. "Right."

While he flies back into the cottage she sets her hand on the being, the smallest bit relieved to feel it shifting with each breath.

She grimaces, glancing up in gratitude when the cat returns quickly with a bright torch burning in hand. With the area being lit up from firelight, Lucy finds she's looking at what she thinks to be a beast. The beast is lying on its side, most of its face hidden in the furrow it dug into the ground when it landed. Of its face she can only make out a closed eye, a reddish nearly black horn and hair that looks like the flesh of a salmon. Inhaling sharply her eyes follow the bruised and lacerated skin from its shoulder down along its back and arm to…

She stumbles backward, her eyes wide. "H-Happy, b-bring the torch closer."

Unsure why his friend is stuttering the cat floats closer, his own eyes going wide when he sees the large black wing sitting at an angle he knows wings aren't supposed to sit.

"Lucy, is that a—" He swallows, afraid to ask.

Fortunately the blonde knows what he's going to ask. She nods, her features set in determination.

"A demon. After all Grandpa had said about them I didn't think I'd ever get to see one." Lucy leans forward, one hand on the demon's neck while the other hovers above what she can clearly see is a broken wing. "Happy, I need two of those saplings I set by the fire yesterday and several of the leather bindings sitting in the cupboard by the door."

"But Lucy!" She turns to him, a hard glare darkening her eyes.

"I know it's a demon, Happy, but it's still a living being and deserves every chance it can get to survive. Now hand me the torch and go get the things I asked for. I need to set the wing before we can move him inside."

He nods. He knows better than to argue with her when she sets her mind to something, even if that something is bound to kill them one day. He flies back to the cottage leaving Lucy to look at the demon more closely. Bringing the torch closer she finally gets a good look at the demon's face, more than surprised when she finds he looks more draconic then the demons she'd heard tell of.

As she watches the eye not in the dirt goes wide revealing a jade green orb glancing around wildly. She stumbles back, out of reach of the sharp black claws but she has nothing to worry about. The demon, after landing its sights back on her falls unconscious again, leaving her to clutch at her chest in panic before she realizes it's out.

"Lucy, I got the stuff." The blonde looks up, grateful to see Happy flying within reach of the light of the torch once more. She nods, holding up the torch.

"Excellent. Set it down by me and take the torch. It'll have to be a rough setting until we can get him inside and clean him up some." He takes the torch without question, hovering high enough above so she can have room to work while still being able to see.

 _ **XxX**_

Sun and Moon did Jackal use him for a training dummy again? That's what it feels like, his head, his arms, his torso, his legs, his entire body feels like he's been put through a Jackal training regimen tenfold. And why is he on his side? He never sleeps on his side, either choosing to hang by his tail or lay on his stomach to keep from pinning his wings.

He growls uneasily, trying to move a wing that feels as if it's bound when he realizes he _can't_ move it. His eyes snap open and he looks around, finding himself in what appears to be a small cottage.

The place is maybe only twelve feet wide by fifteen feet long, with a rather large fireplace taking up the wall beside the bed he's on. On the opposite wall he can see several shelves pinned to the log walls holding different items. Below the shelves he sees a rough-hewn wooden countertop on which rests several bowls with ingredients scattered around. To the left of the counter looks to be a large piece of log someone had taken the time and care to carve into and shape more storage shelves out of.

Frowning in confusion he sits up, propping himself up on an elbow then looks down, his eyes going wide at the numerous pieces of soft leather bound around him. His hand goes to his left abdomen, feeling where the icicles had caught him now bound in the same leather. The demon swallows, sitting up further to try and glance at his wings. Once more his left wing refuses to budge, a piece of leather keeping it thoroughly strapped to his body.

He snarls, reaching to tear it off when he hears, "I wouldn't do that if I were you. Lucy doesn't like it when someone undoes her hard work." He glances up, surprised to hear a child's voice. He hadn't seen any other humans in the cottage, let alone the things that would mark the presence of a child and his mother.

What he does find, when he looks, is a small baby blue and white cat sitting on the counter located in the opposite corner of the cottage closest to the door. Shrugging, the demon again reaches for the leather, this time being stopped by the cat jumping in his lap. "I'm telling you. You're gonna get on Lucy's bad side by destroying your wrappings. She took a really long time to cure those hides and then she decided to use them on you."

Jaw hanging on its hinges, he stares at the cat in shock. He's heard of and seen a lot of strange magic in his travels but never has he seen a house cat that can talk.

He shakes his head to clear it and growls. "Where am I?"

The cat rolls his eyes, stepping off his lap to jog across the cottage and leap onto the counter. Picking up a small bundle he returns to the demon, setting it down in his lap. As the demon goes about poking at the bundle in curiosity the cat sits back, watching him with half-lidded eyes. "You are in our cabin. You crashed in our garden and Lucy saved you."

It lifts a paw, pointing at the bundle. "That's the medicine Lucy made for you to take when you wake up. Instead of hunting for rabbits like I should be she has me kitten-sitting you."

The cover falls away revealing a green blob formed into a rough shape of a sphere by the leather it had been sitting in. The demon grimaces, sticking out his tongue. "Yeah, no thanks. I'll just be going now."

He sets aside the medicine, pushing the cat off the bed and slowly rises to his feet, stumbling the first couple steps before recovering his balance and walking to the door. Before he can reach for the handle, however, the cat is sitting back on the counter glaring at him.

"You're not supposed to leave the bed, let alone the cottage. Lucy will get mad at you and she will come after you if you leave."

In return the demon snorts resting his hand on the knob. "News flash, cat. This Lucy person doesn't scare me. _Nothing_ you say can scare me."

As he turns the knob sharp white claws reach at him with lightning speed. He retracts his hand, turning to glare at the cat. "Look here you little beast," He snarls. "I am hungry, I am tired, and I have a demon slayer on my ass. Now move out of my way before I make you my lunch!"

The cat falters, wavering on his decision but then his gaze becomes determined and he feints a slash at the demon's clawed hand. "No! I will not let Lucy down." He pins his ears to his head, hissing at the demon.

The demon throws the door open hard enough to send the cat flying into the wall and walks out. He gets part way down the path worn into the grass leading to the woods before he's tackled from behind. The force of the hit knocks him face first to the ground and he snarls, rolling on his back to try and knock the cat off. What he doesn't expect is for the cat's weight to suddenly disappear and he lands heavily on his wings. He howls in pain, quickly rolling over then on his feet to search for the cat. He finds it, _hovering_ several feet in from him.

"I am leaving, cat!" The demon snarls, curling his clawed digits. "And if I have to I will kill you to make it happen." He doesn't know how the cat went from being shaped like a cat to looking like a miniature human with blue fur, a tail, and wings but frankly he doesn't care. He just wants to get out of here before his enemy finds him.

"No!" It hisses at him. He can tell it's furious by its white-tipped tail lashing through the air behind it. "Lucy asked me to watch over you and that is what I am doing. You're not supposed to be out of bed."

Surprised by the being's courageousness he snarls. "It doesn't matter what you or this Lucy person wants I'm _leaving._ "

His statement seems to piss the cat off for it darts through the air, hitting him smack in the chest hard enough for the air to flee his lungs. He stumbles back a step before reaching up to grab the cat's head with one hand.

"I'll kill you for your—"

"Zhōng dù xiūkè!"

A sharp shock travels through his body, forcing him to release the cat. He stumbles back another step, looking up to find a flaxen blonde haired woman in a dark cloak standing on the path leading into the trees. In front of her he finds a large white wolf with its teeth bared as if it's preparing to leap at him.

 _How could a wolf do more damage than a demon slayer?_ Even as that question crosses his mind he remembers that he is indeed injured, exhausted, and starving for lack of food during his flight from his battle.

The blonde lets her hand drop to the large basket hanging off her other arm. She scowls, walking further up the path. "Happy, are you okay?"

In answer the cat gets up, shaking himself before climbing back into the air to land on her shoulder. "I'm okay, Lucy. I was trying to do what you said and keep him in the bed." Her lips twitch in a smile and as she reaches up to scratch the cat under his chin the demon spots a brown leather collar tied around its neck.

 _So that's how it talks. A translation spell inscribed on the collar._ Realizing this small piece of information combined with the spell he heard her yell earlier, he turns to her.

"You're a garden witch, aren't you?"

She looks to him, her amber eyes alit with a quiet anger that reflects nothing in her voice. "If that is what your kind calls us then yes. I, myself, prefer the term Whisperer of the Forest. My familiars and I protect the forest of this mountain and the ones surrounding it from danger and in return it helps us to survive." Then she stalks forward, stopping in front of him to look him in the eye. "I took you into my home, looked after your injuries and you try to kill one of my familiars. May I ask why, Demon?"

He's never liked that name. Even when he was _reborn_ as they had called it. He rumbles, oddly confounded by the steel he finds in her gaze. "Natsu." She arches an eyebrow and he looks away. "Call me Natsu. As for your familiar, I have dangerous people that are out for me. If they were to find me with you, they'll kill not just you but your familiars as well. I need to leave before they can find me."

To his surprise her expression relaxes and she steps back, adjusting the basket on her arm. "That, I can understand. Now you are injured. With your wing broken, you will not be able to get far in these mountains. The forest does not take kindly to demons around here. Stay, at least until your wing is healed."

He frowns, "Why help me?"

Instead of answering she looks to the familiar perched on her shoulder. "Happy, before your transformation is over, follow Plue back into the woods and retrieve the deer I left hanging by Black Tree."

It, no _he_ , Natsu has to remind himself, purrs.

"Right away, Lucy." The familiar flies off her shoulder in the direction of the forest. The wolf turns as well, loping back down the path. Once they're out of sight she turns to him.

"I help any injured that cross my path. It does not matter whether you're a demon that I was raised to run from or an injured bird. Every living being deserves a second chance." She steps past him, on her way to the cottage. When she realizes he isn't following she turns back to him, quirking a half smile. "Are you coming, _Natsu_? We'll be having deer stew for dinner tonight and I still need time to prepare the other ingredients. Those two won't be gone long."

Natsu shakes his head to clear it and steps after her, disbelieving his luck to find someone as kind. As he follows her back into the cottage he takes a second look, only now noticing the large—hand written?—spell book sitting on the counter beside the cold fireplace. He walks up to it, finding an old familiar style handwriting on it. Gently he fingers the page, flipping it over to read another text while the blonde piles logs into the fireplace.

She looks around, scowling when she can't find the flint and iron. "Shoot, I hope Happy hasn't hidden it again."

He looks up, finding her looking around the shelves. "Hidden what?"

"The flint and steel." She sighs, walking over to the carved storage. "Happy likes to hide it from time to time to mess with me."

Realizing her dilemma he grins, lighting one claw on fire and flicking it at the wood. When it goes up with a muted _whumph,_ she spins on her heel, looking from the fire to him in surprise.

The demon grins sheepishly, relighting his claw. "Fire Demon. Fire's my specialty."

Lucy nods appreciatively, grabbing the metal pot from beside the fireplace to haul it outside to the stream. Instead he steps forward, easily grabbing the pot by its handle in one hand.

"Let me do it, I need to do something or I'll go crazy."

She finds it humorous, that such a being is willing to help with such simple chores but then she remembers what she had been told as a child.

" _Demons are prideful, bloodthirsty creatures, but they are also stubborn. If they say they will do something then they will. To deny them is to invite their wrath."_

The blonde lets the pot go, watching it fall to his side. "The stream is on the other side of the garden, it flows into a pond near the edge of the trees." As he walks out she turns to the counter, picking up a knife to start cutting vegetables and peeling the roots she had gathered in the forest earlier the day. Her eyes wander over the items already laying on a part of it, including extra leather strips and poultices she's been using on his wounds.

She pauses, however, when she realizes the bundle of medicine she had prepared that morning for when he woke up isn't there. Then she turns, looking to the bed to find a green splatter against the wall and groans.

"Stupid demons and stupid cats. One of these days I'll go gray."

Not wanting to spend the time to clean up the mess on top of everything else she still has to do before sundown she turns to her book, flipping several of the pages. She's still flipping through the pages when Natsu returns with the pot in hand. He hangs it on the bar above the fire and turns to her, arching an eyebrow when he finds her quietly mouthing the words she reads on the page. Then she turns, walking around him to glare at the green splatter on the wall above the bed. She holds up an index finger, focusing on the golden spark growing there. When she's sure, she aims it at the splatter.

"Xiāoshī wūdiǎn!" The edges of the splatter curl into the middle of it before the whole thing crumbles to ash.

He arches an eyebrow watching her grin in triumph. "I didn't know garden witches knew any spells but growth."

Lucy huffs, walking back to the counter to continue cutting. After a minute her shoulders drop and she sighs. "I don't know many spells, growth or otherwise. I'm only two decades old and my only teacher passed when I was fifteen summers. All I have left is the book he wrote _because_ he knew he was dying. And since I'm the only Whisperer in these mountains I can't travel to find more spell books let alone another teacher."

That catches his attention. He walks up beside her, taking the cut vegetables from her and dropping them in the pot. "I know there are both male and female Whisperers," he decides, last second to use her name for the witches instead of the name Demonkind uses. "but isn't the magic generally passed down the matrilineally side?"

She nods, pulling out the roots to peel. "Yes, Mothers usually pass down the spells their bloodline has known for generations to their daughters but when villagers hang both your parents when you're no more than five summers old you tend to be grateful to the old man who happened to be a Whisperer and took you in." She glances up, setting a hand on the peeled roots before he can dump those in the pot as well.

"Only half of a root goes in, the rest go in a basket under the counter by the door." He grins sheepishly, his free wing fluttering in embarrassment. He can't be sure but he thinks he heard anger beneath the slight tones in her voice. He clears his throat, seeking to change the subject. Nothing comes to mind, though. Nothing but the writing in the book.

Hey, he can't have honey if he doesn't break open a beehive.

"Your teacher, why don't you tell me about him?"

The blonde looks up in surprise, her knife falling to the counter beside the root. "Why do you wanna know?"

Using one hand to lift baskets to his nose he uses the other to point at the book. "An old man I used to know, that writing looks a lot like his. He helped me out a lot a few years back and I've always wanted to know what became of him."

Her lips twitch in a sad smile and she moves to kneel beside him, pulling out the correct basket, which also happened to be the last basket he was gonna check. She chuckles when she notices his look of exasperation and gets back up, setting the basket on the counter to untie the knot keeping the cover on it. "Grandpa was a kind old Whisperer. He had a lot of patience when it came to me learning my spells. Particularly when a spell would get too out of hand. He was nearly a millennium old, old even for a Whisperer, and knew so much magic that he once said it would take a century for him to teach me all of it. Still, he tried. Every day while I was growing up he taught me everything I would need to survive and then to take care of the forest around me. When I was a decade, I found a wolf pup. The pack at the bottom of the mountain to the north had abandoned him. He taught me how to heal its wound with poultices and different things to care for it." She smiles softly.

"Now I love Plue and Plue has become one of my familiars. The summer after we found Plue Grandpa took me to meet a fairy named Mavis. Because she loved the light she saw within me she granted me two eternal potions, one I used on Plue, the other I saved."

He's heard of the eternal potion of the fairies. Said to be woven of Moon and Sun's light in equal proportion it allows the drinker to live for eternity. If given to a loved one by the one granted the potion their lives become linked, when one dies so does the other.

To know that she loves her familiar so much she's willing to give the wolf an eternal potion truly is something.

Together they place the roots in the basket and as she covers it, retying the knot she smiles. "Don't get me wrong. Grandpa gave me quite the earful to make sure I understood what I was doing before he even let near the potion, let alone using it on the wolf. The summer I turned fifteen Grandpa started slowing down, started staying in bed longer and working on the spell book while I took care of the garden and did the chores. He wasn't able to do any of the larger spells he used to be able to like singing a sapling to full growth or enchanting our borders to keep the wolf pack at the bottom of the mountain at bay. And by the time winter came around I understood why."

She turns away, walking back to the counter to pour several leaves into a mortar to be pounded to a pulp.

"I begged him to let me use the eternal potion on him but he said he was tired, that he had led a happy life and though he hated to leave me so young that I would be able to survive with the help of my familiars." The blonde shakes her head. "I didn't know what he meant. I only had Plue at the time and his comment confused me. When he passed on the Winter solstice, I still had no idea what he meant and I wouldn't know for another two summers."

Satisfied with the paste in the mortar she puts it into a wooden bowl, pulling some of the simmering soup from the pot to pour over it. Then she turns, handing the bowl to Natsu with a stern look. "Drink it, and don't leave a drop." He yelps in surprise, looking at the bowl as if it might bite him. Don't even get him started on what's in the bowl, bits of green leaves and even a piece of root floating in it.

"Why would I drink something that looks like it came from a mudslide?"

Lucy huffs in exasperation. "It's a tonic made with Gǔ leaves. Gǔ leaves are good for speeding up the healing of broken and sprained bones." When he still looks hesitant she rolls her eyes. "You might not realize it but every rib in your wing is at least fractured and your wing arm is snapped clean through. Now _drink it."_

Slowly he reaches out, gently taking the bowl from her. As he lifts it to his lips he makes the mistake of sniffing it. He pulls it away, gagging at the smell. The blonde scowls, crossing her arms over her chest. "Natsu, I don't care if you're a demon. You either drink it or I will shove it down your throat."

That catches his attention, his darker side coming up to play. He smirks, still holding the bowl away from him. "And how would you do that, Little Witch?"

She arches an eyebrow and holds up her hand, the small golden spark at the tip of her finger.

"Zàntíng."

The spark hits him square in the chest and his entire being just _stops._ He can breathe, he can think, he just can't speak, move, or even blink. Walking up to him, she smirks and grabs the bowl from his outstretched hand. "I deal with injured animals and arguing familiars all the time, Natsu. I need to know spells to step in when I can't physically."

She steps back, the bowl in one hand, her other showing the spark. "Qǔxiāo zàntíng."

When the spark hits him this time he falls back to lean against the counter, a hand coming up to rub his forehead. "Alright, you win. Just give me the damn medicine so I can die already." Stepping forward she bites her lip to hide a laugh. She's only been around the demon three days, actually known him for only part of a morning but she won't deny she enjoys talking to the pinkette. She holds out the bowl, watching him take it from her just as gently as the first time, though this time he pinches his nose closed with one hand while he quickly downs the bowl with the other. After he's finished he grimaces, sticking his tongue out in disgust and hands her the bowl back.

"Ugh, that taste worst then Jackal's cooking on a good day."

Lucy snorts. She may not know who this Jackal is but judging by the fact that Happy has said the medicine is as bad as eating uncooked eggplant she can take a guess that his cooking is pretty bad. She turns, setting the bowl down on the counter just as she hears her name being called from outside. She smiles, walking past Natsu to pull the door open. Finding her familiars standing outside beside the deer carcass, she shakes her head. "Happy, you took too long getting back, didn't you?"

The cat, now sitting on Plue's back, flicks his tail at the deer. "It took longer than I thought to get the deer down from the branches you hung it in or else I would've flown back here to get another pellet."

She sighs, walking down the path to look at the deer and frowns. "At this rate it'll take the rest of the day to get it skinned and quartered. We'll have to hold off on fixing the garden till tomorrow."

Natsu, having stepped out after her, looks over the side of the railing at the garden. Inwardly he flinches seeing the rut in the dirt he must've dug when he crash landed. The sides of it are full of dead and dying plants, the roots completely destroyed. He knows most humans that rely on gardens and farms rely on a strict spring and summer schedule to prepare for winter. It's his fault one of their main sources of grown food has been destroyed and probably put them so far behind in their summer schedule. A flash of guilt curls in his stomach and he walks down the path to the group. It's his fault and while he may not know how to garden, he does know how to skin and cut up meat.

"Lucy," He rumbles quietly when he's close enough. She looks up, meeting his eye distractedly and he nods to the carcass. "I can go ahead and take care of the deer while you work on your garden. After I finish, you can have Plue show me where to store everything." She's hesitant. Her pride says not to accept his help for something like this but glancing over his shoulder at their hard work dying makes up her mind. She nods.

"Make sure you part the meat for the stew first so it has time to cook properly then Plue will show you to the cellar where we put the rest during summer." She looks down at the wolf, arching an eyebrow. "That won't be too much for you, will it Plue?"

The wolf huffs in agreement and she smiles. "Thank you for this. I mean it, thank you."

As she turns to follow Happy into the cottage Natsu grabs her arm, making her look back in confusion. He frowns, licking his lips. "Lucy, you don't have any right to thank me. It's my fault you got into this mess in the first place so it's only right I help you out of it." The blonde smiles sadly, reaching up to gently grasp his hand.

"I don't thank you to make you feel guilty, Natsu." She says quietly, her eyes showing her gratitude. "I say thank you because you're offering help we desperately need if we're to get things back in order by fall." He nods and she lets his hand go, stepping past him to follow Happy. After she disappears through the door he turns to the wolf arching an eyebrow.

"Right, where do I take this?"

 _ **XxX**_

Walking through the door she looks around the cottage, finding Happy already digging through the log cupboard. "Happy, grab the seed pouches, if we're gonna catch up to where the plants are now we'll need to do this right." As she says this she walks over to the spell book, turning through the pages. Sifting through them her mind goes back to what Natsu had said. Did he really know her Grandpa before the old Whisperer had taken her in? If he had then that meant that he had known him since he was her age. _Unless he's older than he looks. It happens to other magical beings, why not demons?_

Lucy shakes her head. She can't focus on that right now. They need to get the ground tilled, finish sorting through which plants survived and which ones they'll need to replant in order for her to know how much they'll need to recoup to make the winter requirements.

"Lucy?" She frowns, looking over her shoulder to find Happy sitting in front of several seed pouches.

"Yeah, Hap?"

His tail flicks in irritation and she has a feeling he's forgotten the difference between the pouches again. "Which plants were destroyed?"

The blonde smiles, turning back to her book. "I think we said the tomatoes, potatoes, and carrots. But it also looked like the root system for the peppers was damaged." Reading through the spell she grimaces, turning back to see the familiar using his tail to set aside the pouches of seeds they'll need. "It looks like the only spell close to what we need to is a song for growing trees." She grimaces. "I just hope they don't turn into trees. That'll make the forest even angrier than when I accidentally had a tree strangle another's roots."

Happy snickers, leaping down onto the floor. "The weeping willows had a field day with lashing you for it."

"We agreed never to speak of that again." She glares at the cat, picking up the basket the seed pouches sit in.

As she pulls the door open Happy walks out beside her, looking up at her. " _You_ said that. _I_ ," he flicks his tail, pointing at himself. "never agreed."

Lucy rolls her eyes, walking down the path to the fenced-in garden. Pausing at the gate long enough to open it, she closes it behind her and grabs the hoe and shovel leaving against the fence. Looking over the deep rut left in the ground she frowns, glancing down at her shovel. She sighs, setting the basket to hang on one of the fence posts before she starts talking again.

"Happy, you have the better nose. Go through and dig up the living plants. I'll get to work on filling the trench." With that the familiar takes off, leaping over the trench to begin sniffing among the pile of dirt. Looking between the two tools in her hands she sets the hoe down, walking to the opposite side of the trench to begin filling the hole. With both she and the familiar working together the hole is eventually filled, the surviving plants are separated from the dead and Lucy's even able to straighten the rows to look closely to how they were right before planting. She looks up, frowning at the sight of the low amount of sunlight.

There's still enough sunlight to get what she needs done but she had hoped there'd be more time to go through and pick some of the ripe vegetables to put up. She shakes her head, turning back to dropping seeds in the ground while Happy walks ahead of her, using his tail to poke holes in the dirt. When the familiar reaches the end of the last row she smiles. "Good job, Happy. You wanna go get the—"

"Water?"

Lucy looks up in surprise. She had forgotten the demon wandering around while she worked. Her smile turns to relief at the wooden jug in his hands, still dripping from the pond and she nods. "Thank you, how'd you know?"

The pinkette grins, pointing at the wolf lying down on the porch. "After he showed me where to put everything, he grabbed this and started dragging it to the pond. I figured you must need it for the garden so I went ahead and filled it." Standing up straight she walks over to where he stands on the opposite side of the fence. As she reaches for the jug her fingers accidentally graze his claws and she jerks the jug from his grasp sharply, a small flush darkening her skin.

"Again, thank you. You've saved us so much time." She can't meet his eyes. Instead, she turns, watching Happy dig his snout into the seed pouch to come out with a couple in between his teeth before he drops them in the hole, pushes dirt over them with his front paws and moves onto the next hole.

"Like I said, it's my fault you're so far behind so this is the least I can do."

Lucy takes a deep breath, turning to give him a large smile then walks back to the rows, pouring just a little water over each mound of dirt covered seeds. After she meets up with Happy at the end, they share a look and she walks into the middle of the garden.

 _ **XxX**_

As the Whisperer steps into the middle of her garden, Natsu looks on in confusion. He's heard tales of the Whisperers singing to the plants to make them grow a certain way but with most Whisperers being afraid of demons, he's never been able to see it for himself. The age-old fear stemming from the two being polar opposites. One side helps things grow and heal. The other seeks to kill and destroy. With demons tending to be so much stronger than their counterparts, the Whisperers have taken to hiding away, surrounding themselves with the flora and fauna they're so drawn to and in return using their magic to strengthen it.

 _Yes,_ He quietly decides, _there is a connection between the two that would make Whisperers of the Forest strong opponents if they weren't so for protecting their charges._

"Dìmiàn zhōngjiān yǒu yīgè dòng." He's drawn from his thoughts—thoughts he realizes seconds later that he shouldn't be thinking of the witch that helped him—when he hears the soft sound. Natsu looks up, his eyes going wide at the gold sparks appearing around the blonde's hands. "Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de dòng. Hǎo ba, dìshàng de dòng."

The sparks begin to spread out from her hands, slowly dropping down to shift above the ground. "Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán." Her voice seems to be no more than a whisper, the quietness of it slowing the magic's progress. She raises her hands, the streams rising as well, and takes a deep breath. "Zài zhège dòng lǐ yǒuyī gēn gēn." Her voice escalates, sending the magic burrowing into the ground.

"Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de gēn. Nà dòng de gēn." The level of her voice rises and falls, as if convincing someone. "Hé dìshàng de dòng."

 _No, something_. His mind softly corrects. It becomes clear as he watches the seeds sprout from the soil at a surprising rate. As they begin to gain height Lucy smiles, spinning her arms around herself. "Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán." The plants are at the point that he can see several small leaves pulling away, growing larger with the magic feeding them. Natsu doesn't notice it right away, but Lucy's voice lowers to near a whisper and she kneels, one hand gently caressing a particularly large leaf.

"Zài zhè gēnshàng yǒu shù. Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de shù." Are those flowers budding already? His eyebrows rise in surprise, watching the flowers grow and slowly split open. "Nà gēnshù shàng de shù." Lucy stands back up, the magic beginning to retreat from the plants. "Ér dòng zhōng de gēn. Hé dìshàng de dòng." Finally, the magic withdraws completely from the ground, slowly returning to her hands.

"Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán."

When the magic completely disappears Lucy collapses to her knees. Natsu wants to go to her but holds back, watching the blue familiar rush through the newly ripening plants to jump into her lap.

"Lucy, are you okay?"

To both the familiar's and his own relief Lucy nods. She wipes her hands on her pants, leaning back to look at the plants. "I'm okay, Happy. I just didn't expect the spell to take so much."

He purrs in relief, rubbing his head against her dirt covered clothes. "Thank goodness, I was afraid the spell had taken too much."

She chuckles, scratching his head. "I think we're both in agreement I won't be doing that one again for some time. I need to practice more before I'll be able to do it without getting drained."

Natsu tilts his head, his brows furrowing in thought. "I thought you weren't good at magic? It looked like you did really well."

The blonde shakes her head, slowly rising to her feet. She walks to the gate, pausing before she opens it to look back at the familiar. "Happy, can you and Plue collect the ripe vegetables? I'm going inside to check this one's wounds," She throws a thumb at him and he squawks indignantly. "and check on dinner."

Happy perks up, his tail lashing in excitement. "Can I use a pellet? I won't need Plue's help and it'll get done faster."

"I don't know. How many pellets do you have left?" She frowns in thought, looking the cat over carefully. "The Exceeds won't be blooming for a little while longer yet. Will you have enough to last you that long?"

He dips his head in a nod. "I have enough, I promise."

She sighs, turning back to the gate. "Alright, use it if you want. Just make sure you check all the plants." As she opens the gate he yowls his delight and races past her. She just smiles, shaking her head. "I honestly don't know what I'm gonna do with him."

When Lucy passes him, Natsu turns, walking alongside her up the path to the cottage. Before they step on the porch the door opens, Happy flying over their heads back to the garden. Natsu chuckles, and when they step into the cottage, she closing the door behind them he tilts a horn in the cat's direction. "So where did you manage to find something like him? I've traveled all over the world, seen a lot of weird and awesome magic but never have I seen a blue cat that transforms."

The blonde witch hums, walking up to the stir the simmering stew. "I'll tell you if you go sit on the bed so I can check your injuries." Doing as she instructed, he watches with rapt attention as she moves about the cottage, going from basket to basket grabbing differing ingredients and setting them on the counter. After a minute she walks up to him, unwrapping the leather covering around his right arm first.

"Three summers ago," She begins quietly, her fingers gentle in their movements. "I found time to make a trip to the northern edge of the mountain range where a small town is located. I traded some of the things I had made over the winter months and learned of some of the news and hearsay traveling through. What I didn't expect was to find a small kitten some boys, maybe fifteen summers in age were torturing."

Her hand gently slides over his arm, taking a feel for the temperature in case of infection. Finding none, Lucy uses three fingers to scoop some green paste from a bowl and spread it over the map of lacerations lining his tan skin. "Playing rough I can understand, but what those boys were doing to the poor thing was just torture. I could tell, just by looking that it would not have long for this world and even though I felt sorry for it there was nothing I could do. If I scared the boys off they would just run for the other townspeople."

Natsu frowns, curling his hand into a fist as she begins to rewrap his arm. "So what happened?" After she finishes wrapping the limb she lifts his arms up, beginning to unwind the ones set around his torso.

"I would've left the kitten had it not been for a little black-haired girl sitting off to the side in tears. She knew who I was because her parents had brought her to me the previous winter with an illness that would've killed her otherwise. She begged me to save the kitten, that the boys had taken it from her because she refused to participate in their cruel games."

The marks across his torso worry her, he can tell. Any other day he would lie and say that he is fine. Today, however, he'd have to agree. On top of the nasty gash scored across his left abdomen from his fight, his chest is littered with large bruises, whip-like marks, and line after line of scabbed cuts. Some like the ones around his heart are from his enemies attacks nearly being successful, the others he's not so sure.

He frowns, reaching down to scratch an itch in his side but Lucy catches his hand, forcing the limb back up. "Don't scratch them, Natsu. Your claws will just make them worse."

In reply, he whines. "I can't help it, they itch."

His remark apparently pleases her because she smiles smoothing paste over the worse of the cuts. "That's good. It means they're healing." When she snatches his hand again he sighs, raising his arm and glaring at the opposite wall. Lucy just chuckles, beginning to rewrap his torso once she's satisfied. Knowing that her story will keep him distracted from the itching she begins again, moving to the bindings of his wing.

"After listening to the girl cry, I agreed and walked up to the boys. You could say I was too soft-hearted if I let a little girl sway my decision but once I'd chosen I was committed to my path. Admittedly, scaring the boys wasn't exactly the right thing to do but once I got closer and saw just how bad off the kitten was I got a little angry. While the boys were still running, I grabbed the kitten, bid goodbye to the girl and turned back to the forest."

Lucy sighs, carefully easing the injured wing open. Slowly she runs her fingers along each of the five ribs, her worry easing when she finds both the heat and swelling has gone down. "It is a three-day hike from the town to the mountain we're on, then another day to hike up the mountain itself. In that time I almost lost him four times, each time only Plue and the forest's good grace helped me bring him around." To his surprise, she chuckles. "Even now Happy is a very stubborn animal. The stubbornness is what, I think, helped him to survive those first few days. After that, I took care of him like I did Plue, and things went on like that until the beginning of winter. In winter the snow gets so high that there are times we're stuck in here for days on end. When that happens, it's great to have Plue and Happy around because they keep me distracted. During that first winter, it was a bit harder. I missed having someone to talk to, to be able to share ideas and observations with."

When she runs a hand down Natsu's wing arm he hisses in pain. Her touch lightens across the still swollen scaled skin then she removes it completely, gently taking his wing in both hands and closing it. He takes a deep breath, looking over his shoulder at her.

"Is that where the collar comes from?"

Easing his other wing open she nods. "I was already practising with a translation spell for Plue, Happy just turned out to be the best test subject. It didn't take me long to get the spell down but figuring out how to put it on him without hurting him took a bit of thinking. Finally, I decided to just embroider the spell into his collar and activate it by saying it as I knotted it. Besides, the fact that he loses his collar nearly every other moon and that I sometimes forget to alter the last rune so he's not stuck speaking the olden language it's turned out pretty well."

Satisfied that she finds no severe swelling and only minor bruising she releases the wing allowing him to close it again. She nods, stepping back to grab the used wrappings, her bowl, and returns to the counter. "Considering it's only been three days since we found you, you're healing well. It shouldn't be more than one or two weeks before you're able to fly again."

Natsu grins, rolling his shoulders. "Thanks, I can't wait to get back in the air." That brings to mind something that had been bothering him. "Speaking of flying, how is Happy able to do that?"

She smiles, turning around to lean against the counter. "About a summer after I took Happy from the village, I was practicing some of the potions from the book. I sent Happy out with Plue to go get some Exceed blossoms because the magical properties in them are the main basis for the Zhuǎnbiàn potion. Now that I know how it's made, it's easy but at the time I was still making mistakes. When they got back, I had the potion simmering on the fire beside dinner. All that was left was for me to grind up the blossoms and throw one in then wait a couple hours. I ground it up, put it in the potion and I set to some other chore I had while I was waiting. What I didn't know were that Happy and Plue got into a fight. They knocked into the pots and some of the potion spilled on his fur and he licked it off." She shakes her head in amusement. "Imagine my surprise when I step back in to find my cat walking around on two paws and freaking out because wings appeared on his back."

Natsu openly laughs and remembering her familiar's antics she giggles as well. After they calm down she reaches up onto the shelf beside Happy's bowl, pulling out a small green bundle. Opening it up Lucy holds up a small round light blue pellet. "After the first time it wore off, we started experimenting with the potion and learned that it gives him as much strength as a human and enhanced stamina. But because the potion loses its effectiveness over time we needed a different way for him to be able to use it anytime without me having to brew a new potion. This is what we figured out. If you take the potion and lay it out in the sun for a day it leaves a tacky paste that can be sectioned into parts. We found out that the potion doesn't lose its effectiveness as fast this way and that it can be rolled into pellets to make it easier for him to consume."

His eyebrows rise in surprise. "That is really impressive. I don't think I've heard of anyone using a potion like that. Usually, they just slip it into food or a drink."

Blushing from the praise Lucy turns her back to him, returning the bundle back to its place after carefully taking count of how many remain. She trusts her familiars explicitly but the silly cat has a tendency to hide important information in a way that expressly irritates her. "Up here, you have to make do with what you have. It's easy since the forest helps but that help only goes so far. Like the Exceed plants. They only blossom in the late spring into early summer. If Happy wants to have pellets until next summer then he'll have to fly up and gather more during the season." A lock of hair falls into her face and she pushes the lock behind her ear with a shrug.

When the door opens revealing a still transformed Happy sitting on Plue's back carrying a basket of ripe vegetables, the conversation is forgotten in favor of cleaning the food off and separating it into the different baskets. After it's done, the group finds themselves relaxing in various places around the fire.

Lucy sits in the rocking chair as she reads through some of the spell book. On the mantel above the fire, Happy dozes in his wingless form, his tail swaying every so often where it hangs off the edge. At her feet, Plue is stretched out, his head laying on her feet. Behind her, she doesn't know it but Natsu looks over her shoulder, reading the spells along with her.

When the demon's stomach rumbles Lucy smiles, looking over her shoulder to find Natsu looking sheepish. "Sorry, I'm a bit hungry."

She closes the book and gets up, walking over to set the book back in its stand then grabs two bowls from the counter. "It's fine, it's about time for dinner anyway." Pulling the lid off the pot, a rich and heady smell of venison stew floods the small cottage. Natsu slides over on the bed, his line of sight settling on the bubbling pot and he drools. When he realizes what he's doing he lips his lips, looking up as Lucy hands him a full bowl.

"Wow, Luce, that smells amazing." Gratefully he accepts it. The blonde merely shakes her head, setting the other bowl down on the floor. As she grabs Happy's bowl she shrugs.

"I didn't do much to it. Just a couple seasonings, some roots, and vegetables, then the meat you sliced." Natsu tips his bowl back, slurping at his food loudly. As the sound fills the cottage she turns back to the pot, filling up first Happy's bowl then her own before finally settling back down in her chair to eat. Taking her first bite she has to agree with the pinkette. She really did outdo herself tonight. She groans in delight, savoring it when she finds Natsu getting up to help himself to seconds.

After he sits back down he doesn't dive into it like he did the first time, instead, looking at the warm soup as if in thought. He looks up, his brows furrowed. "Hey, Lucy?" With her mouth full she can't talk so she chooses to hum to let the demon know she's listening. "You said the fairy gave you two eternal potions, right?"

Where is he going with this? The potions are gone, long gone in fact. Swallowing her bite she nods.

"Yeah, what about them?"

He must sense her suspicion because he holds up a clawed hand, his eyes wide. "No, no. I didn't mean anything like that. I just wanted to ask what you used the second one for."

It takes a second for his words to process but when they do she smiles, leaning back in the chair. She looks up at Happy working on his dinner. "Hey, Hap, why don't you tell Natsu where the second potion went?"

The cat looks up, licking the broth off his whiskers. "Lucy gave me the potion after I got my wings." With that Happy goes back to eating his stew and Lucy snorts, turning to the demon.

"He's not telling you the whole story. The second time we played around with the Zhuǎnbiàn potion he got cocky and tried to fly around outside. He went too far, flying down the mountain into wolf pack territory and his transformation ran out. While we were looking, I realized that if something happened to him, I'd miss him just as much as I would Plue or as I do Grandpa. So when we found him after three days, I gave him the potion." She smiles sadly, her soup forgotten for the moment. "These two are all I have. Only a handful of people outside of the mountain range know where I live and even then they're too far away just to come by for a quick visit. Like I told you earlier—I'm the _only_ Whisperer within these mountains. I have too many responsibilities to leave whenever I like so I settle for what I get and those are two familiars that help me out with every aspect of my work and that I love very much."

Happy leaps off his shelf, jogging over to the chair and leaps up, landing gracefully on the back of the rocking chair. He purrs, rubbing his face against her cheek. "I love you too, Lucy."

Sometime during their chat, Plue had come over and laid down beside the rocking chair again. Now he sits up, rubbing his head on her leg. Grateful for the affection, Lucy looks up, finding an odd look crossing the demon's features.

If she had to guess it would be a mixture of gratitude, joy, and grief? _Why would a demon feel the latter two?_

Natsu looks down, consequently finding himself staring at his reflection in the soup. "I am glad you have two beings who can love you so much, even all the way up here. It hurts to be alone, I could never wish it on someone like you."

Somehow she just knows there's a deeper meaning to his words.

"Natsu," He looks up but avoids her eye. "you may be a demon but what makes you think you're lonely?"

He sighs. "Demons live a long time. In fact longer than any being in Earthland beside maybe the dragons. We are forever alone because no matter the friendships we attempt to make being a demon will tear it apart. Others fear us, and that fear is cast onto our loved ones."

His explanation picks at something she'd been thinking about since early that afternoon and she frowns. "How do demons live so long? Even Whisperers are only built to last a millennium, if that."

He grimaces, setting the bowl down beside him. "All high ranking demons have a book. This book contains the story of their life. From birth, to death, to rebirth all the way up to the present day. When a demon's body dies, as long as that book remains undamaged on Earthland the demon can be reborn." Turning his head up he sends her a pleading, apologetic look. "That is how demons live so long. Because it doesn't matter how many bodies they lose as long as their book remains unharmed." With that he gets up, leaving the cottage for spring's cool nighttime air. Hearing the door close with a quiet click, Lucy sighs, getting up again. Suddenly she's not so hungry.

"Come on, you two. Help me clean up then we'll go to bed. We have a long day tomorrow." Quietly, the trio goes about their chores, banking the fire, pulling the stew off so it doesn't burn, placing the dishes in a basket to be washed the next day. Once all that is done, Lucy settles into the rocking chair, her blanket spread across her lap followed by her blue familiar. Again Plue settles at her feet, though this time he doesn't fall asleep.

Not until long after his family has fallen to slumber and he hears the door open to admit the new friend. Satisfied everyone is here he finally allows himself to drift off.

 _ **Two weeks later…**_

She sighs, rolling over only to feel the rumbling purr that had been at her back move to her stomach. The sound tickles her skim and she giggles airily, opening her eyes to find her familiar stilled curled in his place, purring away in his sleep. Gently resting a hand on his body Lucy looks up, finding tan skin and black scales visible through the ribs of the rocking chair in front of the fire.

It had been nearly a full moon since Natsu had literally fallen into their lives and even though Lucy refuses to admit she enjoys his company as much or maybe even more than her familiars have come to. She knows they'll all be sad to see him go but she'll respect his adamant wish just as much as her friends will respect hers.

Sighing she lays her head back down on the pillow. It's still dark out, they don't need to be up until dawn. At least she doesn't want to be. Thinking about the upcoming day and its possibilities worry her. If his wing is healed will he leave right away? Or will he decide to stay another day? How can she tell him and convince him that he's not alone in this world? His words from that first night. They seem so long ago and yet they spiral around her mind as if she's just heard them minutes before. If only she knew what bothered him so much about having friends and a family…

Somewhere, among her swirling thoughts, her mind begins to shut down and she eventually dozes off once more.

The next time she wakes up, it's to the sound of arguing. Nothing new to her, particularly since they took in the demon. She still finds it amusing Happy and Natsu can't get along for long unless it involves food or fish.

"No, Happy, the best part of the fish is the loin, it has the most fat."

"No, it's the tail meat!" Hearing the cat hiss in return she sleepily smiles. It wouldn't be a normal day if those two weren't arguing even if it's over food.

"Why don't we ask Lucy? She'll be the one to judge."

And there's the other half of her day as of late. Somehow, they've both come to the decision more often than not that she's the one who knows the right answer to everything. And more often than not she's left picking neutral ground to not upset anyone. All in all, it's just the beginning of another day of housing a demon.

Said demon and her cat fighting over what's the best part of a fish. _Yay._

She knows when Happy jumps on the bed because he doesn't just land on the furs, he lands on top of her. She rolls her head up, looking over her shoulder at the blue cat sitting on her hip with tired eyes. "Lucy, tell Natsu the best part of a salmon is the tail meat." If she looks at the pinkette, she'll find him pouting before he snarls at Happy and exclaims his own opinion. Now to see if her prediction comes to fruition.

Lucy turns her eyes to Natsu, finding him leaning against the counter pouting. Check. His eyes flash with playful anger. Check. And he growls.

"I'm telling you, fur for brains. It's the loin!"

Check and mate. Wow, she's getting good at this game.

She sighs, turning to look at Happy again. "Happy, just because you like the tail meat doesn't mean everyone else is too. Just like my favorite part of the fish is the roe, Natsu's appears to be the loin."

The cat groans, falling off of her hip onto the bed dramatically and she sits up, reaching for her clothes, a fresh set she had made from the deer Natsu had skinned. As she gets up, she looks back and forth between the duo, her eyes sharp. "I'm going down to the pond to wash up, no fighting, no fires, and no daring each other put your hand or paw in the beehive."

That had already happened once, leading both to jump into the pond to escape the angered creatures. All she had wanted was some honey. Instead, she had ended up with a cat covered in bee stings and a demon who needed some sense knocked into him. When she gets an agreement from them she slides on her moccasins, and leaves the cottage. Grabbing a small basket containing some roots off the porch she walks down the path, past the garden to the stream running through the clearing. She follows the stream down a fairly worn path to a rocky ledge overlooking the body of water.

Here she turns down steps carved into the steepening slope until she comes around on another side of the pond. The rocky ledge turning into a miniature cliff overlooking the pond and hiding the body of water from view of the cottage. Walking to a stone jutting from the cliff, Lucy sets her clothes down on it. She slips off her moccasins followed by her nightdress, the dress sitting on the ledge with her other clothes then she steps into the water. A shudder runs up her spine but by now she's used to the chilly water that comes from the mountaintop. During the summer she and her familiars are grateful for the cold water to grant a reprieve from the heat.

She smiles, treading through the deepening water until she comes to the point in the cliff where the stream tumbles down in a small waterfall. Near the water feature she finds a bowl-like depression in the rock, she puts the bulbish roots in the depression then grabbing another rock sitting within arms reach she crushes the roots.

Once she's satisfied she scoops water from the fall in her hands and dumps some of it in with the crushed roots. As she uses her hands to rub the watered roots together, suds begin forming over her hands. She smiles, setting the now sudsy roots back in the depression then ducks under the chest high water. Coming back up, Lucy pushes her hair out her face and grabs the soap root, working quickly to scrub herself. She saves her hair for last, waiting until the rest of her is clean before dunking herself again to wet her hair. When her head breaches the surface she hears a small _woof_ and smiles, looking up to find her oldest friend laying on the rock ledge above.

"Hi, Plue. Come on down." The wolf pants in excitement as he gets up, quickly disappearing from her sight. She's not worried though. Not when a minute later a shadow leaps off the ledge, landing with a large splash in the middle of the pond. As the dog comes up for air, Lucy goes for the soaproot, roughly scrubbing her scalp to ease the itchiness. After she repeats the process a second she rinses out the suds, before swimming over to where the white wolf has dragged a branch into the water. Grinning evilly she jumps up on the other end, causing the branch to dip under the surface and dragging Plue with it.

Lucy laughs, swimming quickly to the bank near her clothes. When Plue comes back to the surface he huffs, swimming strong strokes after his human. Plue drags himself out of the water, waiting to shake the first time until he stands besides Lucy. Then he stops, giving her a wolfish grin and shakes himself silly. Lucy ducks her head away from the spray, holding her hands up as if to fend off the water and when Plue stops shaking she's giggles.

"Okay, okay, I guess I deserved that one." The white wolf huffs again, walking up the stone stairs to lay on the sun-warmed rock. Lucy just shakes her head in amusement, reaching to grab the soft leather towel from the basket the soaproot had been in. Instead of drying off by laying in the sun alongside her friend as she would've in the past she's had to take to using a towel with Natsu tending to pop up at the most inopportune times.

As her mind goes back to the demon, she finds a smile unconsciously lifting her lips. For being one of Earthland's most feared creatures he's been surprisingly kind, helpful, and though he sometimes comes up as a bit dense she knows she'll truly miss the pink-haired demon. Over the last two weeks she's found that his survival skills, while a bit more feral then her own, are just as adept; the demon having even shown her a few skills and new techniques for hunting game and preserving as much of it as possible for the winter months. In return, she's had a blast being able to show him how to stay away from the whomping willows and several herbs and poultices he'll be able to make in case he gets injured again.

Hearing a soft questioning bark she shakes her head, looking up to Plue. "I'm okay, Plue, my mind is just off on another mountain." Receiving a whine she smiles softly. "I mean it, Plue. I'm fine." He huffs in disbelief and she reaches for her clothes, first grabbing two soft pieces of deerskin only held together by a strip of leather two inches wide. On the opposite side, a thin cord is threaded through two small holes. She pulls this on around her waist, the strip lining up with a hip, the cord lining up with the other. She ties the cord into a knot, preventing the skirt from slipping off her hips. Finally, she reaches for the last piece of clothing; a top she slips on over her head then ties the straps behind her back. It shows off her stomach and leaves little to the imagination but she doesn't care, she only made it to allow her to stay cool in the summer.

Slipping on her moccasins once more, she grabs her nightdress and the towel, setting them in the basket before making her way around the rocks and up the steps to where Plus is now sitting up. She smiles at the wolf, tilting her head in the direction of the path. "Come on, let's go see if we can get some breakfast before those two finish off the remainders of last night's dinner." Quietly they walk up to the cottage, nearly clearing the garden when a commotion ensues from the small lodge.

Natsu stumbles down the steps of the porch, a clawed hand reaching behind in what Lucy can only guess to be an attempt at scratching himself. He fails miserably, falling over himself at her feet with a groan. He must realize who's standing for him because he gets up casting a pleading glance at her. "Luce, please, you gotta get these bandages off. My wings itch like hell." Biting her lip to hold back a laugh she nods. Natsu's eyes widen in shock. "Really? You mean it?"

This time she does giggle, lowering her basket to hang in front of Plue's nose. "Yes, I mean it. I need to check it anyway." He whoops in joy and she turns to the wolf. "Plue, could you please set this on my bed please?" In answer the wolf gently takes the basket from her hand, trotting ahead into the cottage.

Lucy turns her attention back to the squirming pinkette and scowls. "You have to _sit still_ if you want me to remove them."

He tries, she can see he really does, but even though she knows he won't hurt her on purpose his scales are still tough and his claws are still sharp enough to cut a tree down in one swipe. The latter she'd seen a few days before when a dying tree had to be taken down or else it would have sucked the life from the others around it. So she helps him out. One muttered spell later he's frozen in the position he's standing in. She grabs the chance quickly unwinding the leather tightly binding his wing to his back.

She knew the wing would be healed in the next few days but she didn't think he would have such a reaction when it was fully healed. Though, as she unwinds the leather strap actually binding the wing to his torso she realizes she should've seen it. Of the birds she's healed, each one has had a nearly identical reaction once their wings were fully healed—a rush of energy pushing them to get back into the skies. She grimaces. It definitely is not a mistake she'll make next time. _If there is a next time_. Backing away she mutters the reversal spell...and is almost smacked in the face by a large black wing. She ducks the limb with a groan.

 _Should've backed up further, that was close._

Natsu grins sheepishly, tucking his wing to look at her. "Sorry, Lucy. Didn't mean for that to happen."

She shrugs, walking up to him. "You haven't stretched your wings in nearly a full moon, the muscles are as pent-up as you are. Now extend your wing for me again."

He does as she asks and she runs her hands along the limb, starting first with the furthest rib before moving in closer to the wing arm. She finds no hotspot, feels no breaks beneath the scaled skin, but most of all, when she reaches the wing arm she finds it's completely whole again. She nods, stepping away from him. "You're free to fly but don't push it so soon. Spend a little time getting used to being back in the air before you start playing chicken with the trees."

Spreading his wings wide, they push down hard, sending him into the sky. As he disappears into the trees overhead he misses the broken look in her eyes, he misses the sound of a new hole shattering beside the one for her lost family in her heart. Lucy shakes her head, entering the cottage to find Happy pulling out a cat-sized carrying basket, his few remaining pellets already packed in the bag around his neck. She smiles to hide her misery and approaches the cat. "Heading off to pick Exceed blossoms, Happy?"

He nods, dropping the basket to look up at her. "Aye, the largest amount of them are blossoming today so I'm gonna see how many trips I can make to bring more."

"Do you want some help pulling on the basket?" In answer, he shakes his head causing the bag to fall forward. Pushing his snout into the bag he pulls out a pellet, showing it to Lucy before he eats it. As he changes shape he moves the bag back around his neck, reaching to pull on the basket as well. "I should be okay for the trip." She nods and he walks out the door, preparing to fly off when the sound of flapping wings comes from outside. Lucy follows Happy out the door, surprised to find Natsu standing in the path, his wings only half furled.

The demon grins, looking at the cat. "Hey, Hap, want some help gathering blossoms?"

Happy frowns, tilting his head in confusion. "Your wings are better, I thought you were leaving?"

In return, Natsu's grin becomes a smirk and he leans down, looking the cat in the eye. "You just don't want me around so you don't have to know I can pick more blossoms then you."

The cat grins, running back into the cottage then back out just as quickly. He throws a basket at the demon and takes to the air, flying above the pinkette's head. "We'll see about that. Race you there!" With that Happy disappears through the trees. Natsu turns to Lucy in question and the blonde witch points in the direction the cat is heading. He nods, taking off once more.

Lucy just shakes her head, walking into the cottage to grab her own basket and looks to her remaining familiar. "What do you say, Plue? Wanna go do some gardening?" He woofs in agreement, following her back out the door, this time stopping in front of the garden. Though she leaves the gate open for him, the wolf lays down outside the fence. He'll go in the garden but only when his friend needs his help to gather the vegetables. Other than that he's content with dozing in his spot, one ear on the grounds, the other on Lucy. The blonde begins humming—a small diddy Grandpa had taught her that gives the plants a little extra energy to grow. Her fingers work through the moist soil, digging out the weed roots and pulling ripe vegetables to set in her basket.

As such the day passes by.

Around midday Plue's ear to the forest twitches. He lifts his head, his ears aimed at the forest path and he growls. Hearing her familiar's growl she frowns, looking up to the sky first. It takes a day to get to the Exceed clearing and back. Surely it's too soon for Natsu and Happy to return? But no. The skies are clear so then…

She looks to the wolf, following his gaze to the entrance to the forest. What she finds is worrying. Lucy gets up, leaving her basket where it is she walks out of the garden. Without her needing to ask, Plue is by her side, ready to strike to protect his family. She stops in front of her cottage, both she and Plue eyeing the trio warily as they approach.

The man in the lead has raven black hair, his skin is pale; as if he doesn't get enough sunlight, and he only wears a pair of black jeans and black boots. Her eye, however, is drawn to the two things on his chest. The first being a silver sword pendant that she can sense emanates a protective spell, from what kind of magic she can't even guess. The second is a dark blue mark tattooed on his chest. She recognizes the mark for she has met a fairy and seen for herself the silhouette. Behind him, she would recognize the two dressed in armor anywhere. Rune Knights. People, magic and nonmagic alike that work to keep magical beings under a steady law.

She doesn't like them. Not since they spread rumors among the villagers that had her parents hung and herself orphaned. She draws herself to her full height. Plue, sensing her fear and anger steps in front of her, his stance ready to leap should she be in trouble. The trio stops more then ten feet away, only the pale shirtless man stepping any closer. They are wary. _As they should be. The forest is my domain._

The pale man stops half the distance between her and his men and bows. "Please, Whisperer, forgive us for interrupting your afternoon." His tone is calm, collected, but his voice is warm. Lucy gets the feeling he's met with others as—if not more—standoffish then herself. Indeed, her kind does not like to be bothered, it is why they seek the privacy of the forest and its calm voice.

Taking a breath she hopes her voice will not crack. _Here it goes._ "Tell me what you seek and be gone." Her voice doesn't crack and her words come out as smooth as a baby deer's fur. _Nice one, Lucy!_

She grins inwardly, unwilling to show anything positive to these men.

The man sits up, his arms folding behind him. "I am Sir Gray Fullbuster of the Fairy Tail Demon Hunter Guild. I have been sent on an important mission by the Magic Council to hunt down a dangerous demon known as E.N.D., it goes by the name Natsu Dragneel and is a menace to Earthland."

 _Natsu? E.N.D.? The most dangerous demon and the sole catalyst of the demon war going on fifteen summers now?_ Her heart says it's impossible such a being could be her demon but her mind says it's highly possible. _I need to think. No, I need to talk to Natsu. I refuse to give over such a kind being for rumors and hearsay._ Plue's growling is getting to be too loud. She knows he is protecting her but for the moment she doesn't need it.

"Lěngjìng."

The man tenses as she gives the command but when Plue stops growling, moving to stand taller in front of her he calms down as well. She hates to give her familiars commands, it is not in her being to boss them around, but she needs to keep her imposing figure and she knows Plue would not calm down without the order. "So you are seeking a demon?"

The man, Sir Fullbuster, nods. "Yes, he was last reported disappearing into this mountain range and as the sole caretaker of the forest I had thought you would know of something or had heard something through the trees."

Her lips quirk in a half smile. "So you thought that by invading my forest, interrupting my day, and trying my ire you would be foolish enough to learn of a demon as old as time itself?" Oh, she is enjoying this way too much. The fear traveling through this _Knight_ and his friends is just too good.

Sir Fullbuster nods. "That is correct."

While she is enjoying this she still has things to do and a demon to pounce on when he and Happy return. "Then you have traveled all this way for naught." His shoulders drop drastically as she continues. Good thing they fixed the garden weeks ago. Otherwise, she'd be in trouble. "This mountain range was home to the dragons of old. They planted this forest, cared for it and nurtured it. The trees remember their care, remember the emotions that plagued them. They remember the dragons' hatred for the demons. If you are looking for a forest that would tear apart a demon as soon as it is in reach then you have found it. If you are looking for a demon then you need look elsewhere."

That's what it is. That is what rubs her the wrong way about this man. The trees themselves are calling him a traitor, a betrayer of the brother's oath. That is why the forest radiates its dislike. Her own dislike for the man being the Demon Slayer magic that taints him and his surroundings. Her eyes narrow in silent anger and she allows her voice to darken. "You, Sir Demon Slayer must leave."

For once his cold mask cracks and he stumbles back a step in surprise. Lucy smirks. "Did you really think your dark aura would escape the trees? That they couldn't sense the betrayal you carry on your shoulders as heavy as if you were cloaked in iron?" Her eyes darken once more, this time a golden ring begins surrounding the nearly coal black irises. "Leave my forest or risk the wrath of it."

Fullbuster glares, crossing his arms over his chest. "Are you threatening agents of the Magic Council?"

Lucy shrugs. "I do not make threats, I make promises and I made a promise to the forest I would protect it from beings dipped in evil. Now _LEAVE._ You have until the end of the day to be off my mountain and the end of the seventh day to be out of my forest." Plue, picking up on her cues, starts growling again, though this time it sounds louder to the men.

Fullbuster, sensing the danger turns, walking down the path and with one last glare from Lucy the Knights follow him. When they step back into the forest, well out of earshot of the witch, one of the Knights speaks. "Sir Fullbuster, what are we to do with her? She is obviously hiding something."

The slayer frowns, his eyes on the path. Though his fingers itch with ice he knows better than to pick a fight he won't win. "Leave her be. Whisperers have many secrets, trying to get them to tell you one is like opening Pandora's box. Too much trouble will come of it."

"But what if she is hiding the demon?"

Fullbuster chuckles. "You two know nothing of Whisperers do you?" He doesn't wait for an answer before continuing. "The feud between Whisperers and Demons is just as bad as it was between Dragons and Demons. In fact, if Whisperers were to join our war we would flat out win within the week. Leave the poor witch alone. If dear old Natsu is hiding in these mountains then it'll be in one of the old dragon caves. We'll search those and stay away from the witch and the forest."

"Yes, Sir Fullbuster."

 _ **XxX**_

The sound of laughter reaching her ears, she looks up, her heart shattering again at the sight of her familiar and the demon getting along. When they land they grin seeing her sitting on the porch step. "Lushi guess what?" She tilts her head, smiling softly at the blue cat.

"You ate all the fish again."

Happy, too happy to realize it, nods. "Yea—wait what?"

Natsu cackles. "Good one, Luce. Come on, Hap, lets put these blossoms inside." The cat, albeit whining about being turned on, walks into the cottage. Before Natsu can follow him, Lucy's hand shoots out, grabbing him by the wrist. He frowns, looking down at the witch. "Is there something wrong, Luce?"

She doesn't look him in the eye, she refuses to look away from the forest entrance, from the place those monsters disappeared. "I need to talk to you." She must give something away in tone because he tenses under her touch.

"Okay," He mutters lowly not long after. "just let me put these inside, please?" Lucy nods, releasing his wrist. He walks inside, putting the basket down beside Happy's and walks back out, ensuring his wings are folded tightly before he sits beside her on the step.

She takes a deep breath, organizing her thoughts into a more manageable chaos then, "I had visitors today. The first in three summers actually." She can feel him tense beside her, but now that she's started she won't stop.

 _Sorry, Natsu._

"Natsu is just your human name isn't it?"

He's quiet, frightfully so until she hears him sigh. "Before I was _reborn_ , my name was Natsu Dragneel, dragon slayer of the Fairy Tail guild. After I was known as Etherious Natsu Dragneel or E.N.D."

Lucy nods, her eyes on anything but him. From Plue napping on the rock ledge of the pond to the trees swaying with the wind. "I figured as much. When that pompous ass came around asking for you the way he was I knew there was something you weren't telling me."

He visibly flinches, pulling away from her. He had come to care for her a lot but to see her being so cold it hurts as if he'd been stabbed by his enemy's ice sword again. "I'll leave then." Before he can get up he finds her small hand wrapped up in his, her fingers entwining with his. The demon stops, staring at the connection in shock and she smiles sadly.

"I didn't tell you before but the Rune Knights killed my parents. When my mother refused to sleep with one of them the lot of them went throughout the town spreading rumors about her and my father, saying that they were demons in disguise, they killed for fun. Anything they could come up with to discredit them they put out there. Eventually, the townsfolk got so scared they lynched them. I've heard rumors about E.N.D. About some of the things he did and still does and now, looking at you I find I can't believe them. Because I know that rumors are just as lethal as any sword or spell." Now she looks at him, her eyes broken with grief and sewn together with the slimmest cord of hope. "I'm gonna give you one chance, Natsu. Disprove those rumors, tell me what happened."

The demon nods, silently grateful for her touch. It anchors him to the present, to the here and now. Taking a deep breath, he exhales slowly, looking down at their connection for support. "Four centuries ago, I was born in the village to the north, the same one you found Happy in." Glancing up to find her watching him intently he continues slowly. "The dragons claimed these mountains as their territory, even calling them Lóng zhī shān in the old language. When a demon swept through and destroyed the town the dragons were only able to save seven children. The dragons took us in, raised us in their mirror image in the hope no one would forget their very being, and it worked. When the dragons disappeared no one forgot them because the seven of us wouldn't let them. Whereas the dragons fought the demons, we took up their mantel, protecting Earthland from the foul creatures."

He grimaces. "I didn't know it at the time but I had drawn the wrong card from Fate's hand. When I was picked to be trained by a dragon I ended up being trained by the Dragon King himself, Igneel. About two centuries after the dragons disappeared we became aware of a plan the King of Alvarez was attempting to put into action. He wanted to take the power of the Dragon King and put it into a demon. I inherited Igneel's powers. You can see where the trouble arose." Lucy nods. "Yeah. Anyway, we decided that hey, one dragon slayer is harder to catch then seven so we'd split up. To this day I still haven't seen all my brothers but I know they're alive and well. I ran on my own for a century and a half before I came across a wise old man traveling on the road. He introduced himself as Makarov, Master of the Fairy Tail guild."

She tenses and he smiles, looking down at her. "I told you I had known him. And I did, I knew him for three and a half decades before he left on an important mission and put my brother in charge of the guild. When I met him he pushed me in the direction of his guild which happened to be located in Magnolia, a few miles south of the lowest point of the mountain range. Gramps helped not just me, but while he was out exploring if he found one of my siblings he helped them out as well. We weren't caught up on the latest language so he taught us. That's how I recognize his writing from that book, because he did a lot of it for us." He has to stop, it's hard to talk past the lump in his throat but… he knows he needs to. He can't lose Plue, Happy and most of all he can't afford to lose Lucy. Feeling his hand be squeezed he gives the blonde a sour smile, squeezing her hand back.

"About two moons after Gramps left on his mission the demon guild, Tartaros swept into Magnolia. They're a sleeper guild for Alvarez that performed a lot of underground activities in Fiore. They demanded the guild turn over their fire dragon slayer or else the entire town would be obliterated. With my brother the guild's master almost everyone was amped for a fight." He looks at his lap, his voice falling low. "Everyone but one person. Gray Fullbuster. He came to the guild the same time I did and we got along about as well as fire and ice but that was only on the surface. We were battle-brothers. We always had each other's backs. Until the day Tartaros swept into town. He ambushed me at my shack on the outskirts of Magnolia and knocked me out. When I woke up, I was strapped to a table and demons were poking just about everywhere they could."

Lucy scowls. So that was what she had been reading off the man. She should've killed him while she had the chance.

"After that, I don't remember much, just that I was _reborn_ as a demon and under the Emperor of Alvarez's control." He spits the word as if it's something horrible and honestly, she doesn't blame him.

She grabs him by his chin, looking him in his jade eyes to find grief and guilt clouding them. If she's getting this right then she has a feeling she knows why the guilt is there. "Natsu," She murmurs. "it wasn't your fault the demon war started. You didn't have any choice in the matter, did you?"

He shakes his head, looking away from her. "No, I didn't want to do it but I had to. Zeref owned my body. Any order he gave I had to follow."

"How did you break away?"

Natsu flinches again, his grip loose on Lucy's hand. "There was a woman in Fairy Tail that was as much of a sister to me as Gray was a brother. Her name was Erza Scarlet. Even after I had been reborn she was the only one who kept looking for me. She finally found me in Clover Town. I was sent to help Lullabye demolish the town because all the guild masters were there. She confronted me, begged me to fight it—and I almost had—when Zeref's power fell on me completely. I lost track of who I was, what I was doing. It was like he completely crushed who I was."

He closes his eyes and Lucy squeezes his hand in reassurance. "What happened, Natsu?"

"I-I," He chokes, ducking his head into his knees. Gods, he doesn't want to have to remember this one. The way her eyes were blown wide in terror, her precious armor strewn about in pieces. Why? _Why?!_

A hand strokes up his back slowly, passing between his wing arms before going back down. "Natsu," It hurts, the pain, the memories, _make it stop_! "it's alright. You're not there, you're here. Come on." Her hand tightens on his until it almost hurts, even through his tough scales. The pain in his chest, the weight on his heart. It's beginning to lessen. He finds he's able to take deeper and deeper breaths until finally, it doesn't feel like he's choking on his guilt. Even though his head remains between his knees the terror and guilt has lessened.

"I killed her," He whimpers. "I killed her, Luce. And all I can remember is her body staring back at me in terror. After that, I couldn't stand it. I physically broke myself of his control and I fled." He lifts his head, resting it on his free hand, and turns to look at her. "I tried to go back to Fairy Tail but all my friends turned on me. My brother told me to run, that he and my other siblings could never hate me for what I was made to do but the humans would never understand. So I did. I ran all over the world, until one day I ran into Gray again."

He shudders, his wings fanning out to cover them like a blanket. In here, in the little cocoon of his making, he feels safe. With his witch, he feels warm. With both, he wishes he would never have to leave.

"At the time I didn't remember he was the one who had handed me over to Alvarez. My memories from about that time were still too jumbled for me to think clearly. So when he offered a place to hide I accepted it without hesitation. I didn't know he was leading me back to Alvarez. Not until he led me into a room filled with soldiers. I fought my way out again, and by the time I had come face to face with him again, I had regained enough memories to know right from wrong. We fought for a full day and night before I couldn't do anymore."

He shakes his head, leaning closer to her.

"I hadn't slept for nearly a moon between always running and the nightmares, I hadn't eaten for longer then that, and I was angry my best friend and battle-brother had betrayed me twice. I called an end to the fight with an end all spell and fled toward my homelands. It's been so long and I was so tired when I flew over that I couldn't find any of the caves anymore. I became disoriented. After that, I guess I passed out in the air and woke up in your cottage." Taking a deep breath he sits up, leaning even closer until his shoulder is pressed against hers. "Gray's nearly killed me more times then I care to count anymore. Somehow he always manages to find me and somehow I always manage to just barely escape. I have to keep moving or else he'll find me and he'll finish what he started. I like you, Lucy, a lot actually. You've shown me kindness I haven't received from anyone since the guild. You've shown a demon—which should be your worst enemy—compassion, and you've done for me then I could ever hope for. Even if he has been here once already he may come back and I don't want to see you hurt. I may actually burn the world to the ground if I lose you."

She smiles softly, resting her hand on his cheek. "Natsu, I like you a lot too. It doesn't matter who or what comes after you. As long as I live you will forever have a home with me." He does something that surprises her. The demon sets his head into the crook of her neck, careful of his horns, and begins purring much like Happy. The sound rumbles through his chest, spreading through his body and she giggles wrapping her free arm around him in a hug. "I promise, Natsu. You will always have a home with me and my family."

He sits up, his purring stopping as he does and he gives her a small smile, one hand reaching up to caress her cheek in turn. As his wings fold behind his back he leans closer. "Lucy, I will have to take you up on that offer."

"You two are so weird." Both Demon and witch jerk backward, their eyes going to the blue cat sitting in the doorway.

They share a look and start laughing, Natsu leaning over to scratch his head. "I guess you could say that, Bud." Then he turns back to Lucy. Though his eyes still carry the huge burden of his past she can see that their talk has blown what was a small ember uncovered over their time together into a flame of hope and life. "I guess this is goodbye?"

She smiles softly. "It is never goodbye, it is always good night. So until I see you again I'll keep my eyes to the sky."

He grins, getting to his feet. "I'll keep my ear to the ground. Don't wanna miss any messages you might send my way." Backing up a step, he looks over at the white wolf padding up the path then at Happy. "You two keep her safe and I'll see ya when I come back around."

Plue _huffs_ his agreement and Happy moves to sit beside her.

"Aye, Sir!"

Midnight black wings spread to their full twelve-foot span, and before he takes off he looks back at Lucy. _E.N.D. or Natsu, it doesn't matter to you who I am. Maybe I should do the same._ His tail lashing behind him in excitement he takes to the skies.

When he's out of sight, Lucy sighs, getting to her feet. "Come on, you two. It's late. Let's get dinner going and finish collecting the ripe vegetables."

"Lushi, I have some pellets left, why don't I collect and you cook?" Happy meows.

She smiles, walking into the cottage. As the night wears on, however, her smile fades and by the time bedtime comes around it's completely gone. Sitting on the bed in her nightdress her eyes wander to the chair. It is odd, missing someone as much as she misses him, but thinking back to their words earlier something inside her settles at the fact they'll see each other again.

The next morning, opening her door she realizes the something in her chest is her heart, and her heart is beating in joy at the stack of books before her. She kneels, one hand setting on the cover of the top book she picks the note up with the other. Quietly mouthing the words she looks back at the book and the three letters burned into the leather takes on a new meaning.

 _Luce,_

 _You might not be able to leave the mountains but I can. As thanks for helping me out, I found a few books you might find of special interest. There's just one more thing I need to ask of you. In this stack is a very special book. Keep it safe and I'll be back before you know._

 _\- Natsu_

* * *

 **Right, so first up on the agenda. Lucy's spells. If you wanna know what they mean, look at the bottom. All the translations are there. If you would like to translate them yourself I used the English to Chinese (traditional) on google translate.**

 **On another note, I've been up for nearly four days straight, with maybe only a few hours naptime in between to get this one done for today. The fucking monster chapters just keep coming up out of nowhere. As it is I still have to finish day 4 because Mira and I both agreed the first version I did wasn't right. So anyway, I hope y'all enjoyed the one shot and I will see y'all tomorrow with Day 3: Waking.**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**

 **P.S.**

 **Translations:**

 **Nǐ wàngle zàicì tiáozhěng fú wén. - You forgot to adjust the runes again.**

 **Zhōng dù xiūkè - Medium shock**

 **Xiāoshī wūdiǎn - Go away stain**

 **Gǔ - bone**

 **Zàntíng - pause**

 **Qǔxiāo zàntíng - unpause**

 **Dìmiàn zhōngjiān yǒu yīgè dòng. - There was a hole in the middle of the ground.**

 **Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de dòng. Hǎo ba, dìshàng de dòng. - The prettiest hole that you ever did see. Well, the hole in the ground.**

 **Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán. - And the green grass grew all around and around.**

 **Zài zhège dòng lǐ yǒuyī gēn gēn. - And in this hole there was a root.**

 **Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de gēn. Nà dòng de gēn. - The prettiest root that you ever did see. Well the root in the hole.**

 **Hé dìshàng de dòng. - And the hole in the ground.**

 **Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán. - And the green grass grew all around and around.**

 **Zài zhè gēnshàng yǒu shù. Nǐ jiànguò de zuì piàoliang de shù. - And on this root there was a tree. The prettiest tree that you ever did see.**

 **Nà gēnshù shàng de shù. - Well the tree on the root.**

 **Ér dòng zhōng de gēn. - And the root in the hole.**

 **Hé dìshàng de dòng. - And the hole in the ground.**

 **Lǜ cǎo sìchù mànyán. - And the green grass grew all around and around.**

 **Zhuǎnbiàn - Transform**

 **Lěngjìng - Calm**

 **Lóng zhī shān - Mountains of the Dragons**


	4. Waking

**Whoop! This one shot is a bit more manageable then the last two have been. It didn't explode like a firework on the fourth of July but it still has a good theme to it. One I can't quite seem to rid myself of lately. Anyway, raise your hand if you love a good twist on an old favorite! *raises hand* I know I do. Also, before Mira has a hemorrhage. Those cliches she and I were talking about? Yeah, there'll be a few in here.**

 ***eye roll* I like spicing things up but sometimes cliches can be really fun. Speaking of which, that reminds me of a trope I really want to get my hands on. If you follow me as a writer you may be seeing it sometime in the future. Until then go get lost in another Au.**

 **Summary: The siren's call, after having fallen quiet for so long sings to him. Who is he to deny its succulent tone? Who is he to turn down the crimson lifeblood of the human who hath wandered in to disturb his hibernation?**

* * *

Day 3: Waking

Four women sit around a table, multiple empty cups and bottles litter the top. One, a blonde drops her head onto her arm, a dry sob escaping her.

"Every guy I date is a fucking jackass!"

The bluenette beside her, looking quite a bit less drunk, smiles sadly, patting her back. "I'm sorry, Lucy, I didn't know Loke was gonna turn out that way."

The blonde's head shoots up and chocolate brown eyes drunkenly glare at her. "Didn't know, Juvia? You didn't know he was gonna cheat on me with the pink-haired slut?!" She gets up, wobbling terribly as she tries to get in her friend's face.

"How the fuck was anyone to know that the son of a biscuit eating bastard's whore would cheat because he 'found her quieter and more adorable.'?"

Juvia flinches away from the drunk and angry blonde. Thankfully, the brunette sitting across from her comes to her rescue, wrapping her arms around the blonde's torso.

"Easy there, girl. I love seeing a cat-fight but I don't think you'd win this one with just how drunk you are."

The blonde scowls, looking over her shoulder at her captor. She stays quiet, though, collecting her thoughts before she speaks again, this time in a quieter tone. "I'm not drunk, Cana. I'm just severely pissed."

She arches an eyebrow, leaning back to look Lucy in the eye. "Are you sure about that? Cuz you've already had one bottle of wine."

Lucy rolls her eyes, easily prying her friend's arms off her breasts before returning to her seat. "Cana, when someone is friends with you, their alcohol tolerance goes through the roof or else they end up losing their virginity, their car, their house, and their clothes—not particularly in that order—all in one night."

The brunette cackles, returning to her seat. "Damn straight, though I gotta say you were a good fuck."

Very quickly the flush in Lucy's cheeks isn't just from the alcohol in her system. She giggles, reaching for an unopened wine bottle.

"Exactly my point."

The fourth friend frowns, still daintily sipping on her third glass of wine. "Lucy, are you sure you're okay?"

She scowls, popping the cork in the redhead's direction so close it skims her ear. "I told you, Erza, I'm okay. Just pissed as hell and planning murder." She pauses, a thought running through her mind and she grins, looking Cana. "Tell ya what, since you don't believe I'm okay we'll do this. Cana, dare me."

Her friends have differing reactions. Juvia and Erza sputtering in shock while Cana cackles in joy.

The drunkard grins, leaning forward to set her hand on Lucy's shoulder. "No second guesses, no backing out, once you find out you have to do it for the time set. Are we clear?"

She nods and Cana seems to sober up almost instantly, her expression becoming serious. The brunette sits up, her shoulders straight despite the ruffled look of her clothing. "Lucy Heartfilia, I dare you to walk to Dragneel Manner, stay there until," She glances quickly at the wall clock. "Ten P.M. tomorrow night then report to my home so that we may honor your balls of fucking diamond because that place is creepy as fuck and I wouldn't even take my boyfriend there to fuck him. Should you not go through with this dare, you will swear to wear a vibrator of my choice to work for a week."

Lucy looks at her stoically, waiting for her to wrap up with, "Do you understand this dare as I have spoken it to you?"

The blonde solemnly nods. "I, Lucy Heartfilia, swear by the rules of this ridiculous dare."

They shake hands, sealing the deal and their friends groan, Erza slamming her head into the table hard enough to knock several glasses off while Juvia facepalms, glaring at the blonde.

"Lucy, I hate to say it but I won't be coming to your funeral, the Dragneel Manner is suicide."

Lucy grins, getting back up. "I know, it's just the kind of dare I need to forget jerkface and do something dumb to move on with my life."

With that she walks away, not bothering to grab her purse or car keys from the table beside the door since she'll be back the next day. As the door slams closed Erza runs a hand down her face.

"Most women when they find their boyfriend cheating on them, cut their dicks off, binge ice cream and anime, then go out and have a one night stand. Not this bitch, no, you just had to hand her the most dangerous thing in this town to do."

Cana grins darkly. "Relax, ladies, she'll be fine, in fact, I say she'll be more than fine when she returns."

 _ **XxX**_

Walking down the road, Lucy is more than glad she hadn't bothered to wear heels to her friend's house—the sneakers she's in is better for the walk in the woods than heels ever would be.

She hums to herself, easily able to focus more on the dirt road and the full moon above than on her inner turmoil.

As such, it's not long after she sees Dragneel Manner. The mansion had been abandoned for the last century since the heir to the fortune went missing. However, no one could claim the building as the original deeds were missing and if anyone tried to claim it strange things would happen. Anyone who moved into the house would mysteriously get injured or would start to hear voices until eventually it only became a building for hooligans to break in for pranks. Even then they would become too scared to stay around long enough for the pranks.

Lucy swallows, looking over the front of the rundown building for a way in. With alcohol boosting her courage and the dare strengthening her spine, she trudges forward, moving closer to the broken window she finds in the furthest room of the first floor.

As she approaches the window she hesitates, glancing over her shoulder. Surely Cana wouldn't know that she'd just stayed in the woods for the night?

Then she shakes herself and turns to the window, one hand fitting to the space in between broken glass shards, the other reaching up to grasp the upper edge of the window and propel herself through.

She lands inside on her feet but when she pulls her hand off the pane she hisses, the glass nicking her hand. The blonde pulls her sleeve down, grasping the fabric with her fingers to stop the bleeding as she walks further into the room.

Lucy stops by what looks to be a table visible in the moonlight while she waits for her eyes adjust. Once they do she grins, eyeing the candle in its holder.

For once she's happy her Ex was a smoker, for now, she happens to still have the lighter he left behind to light the wick. When she does so she raises the flame up, looking around the room to find it nearly bare save the one table with the candle.

Turning around again she finds the door, carved wood stained a deep mahogany even if it has faded through the years. Lucy walks toward it without hesitation, curious to explore the rest of the house.

Through the door she finds herself in a hall, leading past several doors on each side. Before she steps foot into the hall she pauses, a shiver running down her back. It feels as if she's being watched, like being hunted like prey.

 _Impossible._ She scoffs. _I'm the only one idiotic enough to step foot in here._ With that thought in mind, she steps into the hallway, raising the candle over her head to have the light stretch further.

What she finds in the candlelight isn't all that impressive. Simple wooden floors trodden smooth from years of occupants and hooligans, white trimmed walls covered with portraits of the Dragneel family, and an old chandelier swinging when there is not a breath of wind in the house?

 _Okay, kind of spooky. I'm still not gonna give Cana the pleasure of torturing me for a week._ Knowing her drunkard friend as well as she does, she vows not to fail the dare. Now if only the damn drunkard hadn't chosen the scariest place in all of Magnolia to spend the night.

She swallows her fear and marches onward. Might as well use the time to explore the place further.

 _ **XxX**_

It starts as a mere murmur. Less than a whisper, greater than a hum. It rings and rings, growing in volume until he can no longer deny its calling. When was the last time he heard its call? Tasted the relief that came with seeking it out?

He doesn't know. His hibernation has gone on for too long. Now it is time for him to rise, to seek out the siren's call and sate his hunger.

He grumbles, his eyes slowly opening in the darkness surrounding him. Oh, gods. Did the Ice Prick bury him again? If he finds out he did, he'll feed the bastard to the piranhas.

As he begins to move he feels the board under his back give way. His eyes go wide and he strikes the floor, the blow forcing a yelp from his lips. Well, that answers the burial question. For a moment he lays there, jade eyes glaring at the top of the coffin he had been laying in.

So his friend decided to nail him in the coffin but not bury him? What the hell happened?

He rolls over onto his knees, shaking his head to get rid of the cobwebs. As several fall to the ground around him, his salmon hair falls into his face and he grimaces. When was the last time he had his haircut?

No. Better question. When was the last time he was _awake_?

Slowly he rises to his feet, looking over himself to find the same clothing he had fallen into hibernation in. His harem pants, as worn and ragged as the day he slumbered, his black and gold vest, now buttoned across his front instead of open as he prefers, and…

He panics, a hand coming up to grasp the fabric around his neck and he sighs in relief.

His muffler, dustier than it should be but still as whole as when it was first gifted to him. Perhaps the only article of clothing on himself he can't figure out is the tattered and torn traveling cloak adorning his shoulders. Before his hibernation had set in he'd left it in the care of his friends but now…

Why does he have it?

 _All these questions and no answers._ He grimaces, intending to leave to seek his answers when a small fact he had forgotten rises back to his focus.

The drumbeat.

Pausing in his steps he turns his eyes to the ceiling above, attempting to find the source. He inhales, closing his eyes as he does and exhales, his hearing enhancing with the gesture. The call grows louder, turning his attention to the west wing and he grins, his eyes snapping open to reveal swirling crimson.

 _Let the hunt begin._

 _ **XxX**_

"How could a family of two fit so much furniture in one room?" Lucy scowls, looking around what appears to be a dining room filled to the ceiling with unused furniture.

Having found a portrait of a man with fiery red hair standing beside a small boy of no more than the young age of seven, she quickly gathered they must've been the original occupants of the house. Now if only she knew what happened to them…

She sighs, closing the door behind her. Too many questions lie within the secrets of this abandoned manner and as much as she wishes to know the answers, she knows they've most likely been lost to the gears of time.

The blonde walks back down the hall, past the doors of the rooms she's already been in, finally coming to a stop in the main entryway of the building. The candle in her hand burns at only half, leaving her still with a few more hours of light before she must seek out another to pass along the flame.

When a light tinkling noise reaches her hearing she looks up, raising her candle to the large chandelier hanging above the entrance. Just as it has since she first entered, she feels another shiver run the length of her spine. She knows it can't be the weather, they're in the middle of a heatwave in the middle of July—no cold breezes to be felt. And though her gut spins with the warning someone is watching her, she pushes it down.

The same question coming to mind each time doubt creeps up.

Who else would be stupid enough to enter this place?

Still, she shudders, turning to face the stairs leading up to the second floor. Maybe she should've taken her phone when she left the drunkard's apartment. At least she'd know how much time had passed since she entered.

The only clock in the building, a great grandfather standing guard of the entryway, has long stopped ticking. Unknown generations of cobwebs hanging off the pendulum can attest to that.

Lucy swallows, taking the steps one at a time, testing their integrity with each footfall should the old wood finally give out. Thankfully, the termites seem to have abhorred the house as much as the people of Magnolia, the old wood—albeit warped—is still as sturdy as the day it was laid.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she finds herself once more looking down to halls lined with rooms. Her eye twitches in aggravation.

"What is with all the rooms? Surely they couldn't have had that many people present at one time." She grumbles under her breath, walking toward the door set directly across the hall from the stairs.

Quietly she turns the knob, opening the door to reveal what appears to be a study or a library. Save for a part of the wall on her right, lined in river stone around a large fireplace the walls are lined with shelves and shelves of books.

Her eyes go wide in awe and she steps further into the room, raising the candle above her head to get a better look at the room. In every room she's explored so far, the amount of furniture she's found has amounted to maybe one or two pieces with the dining room being the only exception...until now.

This room is exactly as she had pictured a nineteenth-century study to look. Two one armed deep red chaises lie symmetrically foot to foot in front of the fireplace, a nice comfortable place to read on a cold winter's night. Pressed against the back of the lounging chairs is a table, again mirrored on both sides, with golden candelabra positioned neatly on top.

Finding candles in the candelabra, Lucy holds the one in her hand to each of the wicks, smiling when they light.

"There, at least it won't be so dark."

With the additional light she finds that there are two writing desks, each positioned to face the center of the room and further toward the fireplace. She approaches the one closest to the wall opposite of the door, marveling the fine details carved into the wood.

At first, she can't make out the whole image but as she steps back, holding the candle in front of her, her mouth drops. Carved into the wood in sharp relief a dragon looks out; as if it too has been staring at the fireplace. Slowly her hand comes up to trace the minute scales so carefully chipped on the front of its snout, outlining the nostrils. The hand trails over the snout, feeling the way over the eye to the eye ridge then further up to where the horns poke out above the desk, a pen sticking out of a hole in the left horn.

However, Lucy finds the head to be quickly trumped by the body of the dragon making up the main body of the desk. Each overlapping scale, every dip of muscles, it has been carved with such a careful hand she knows that working even a hundred years in her friend's antique store would never show her something as impressive.

She follows the flow of the body out over an extended wing arm to the wing itself, marveling at the texturing done to the wing membrane and ribs. So absorbed into the design she is, she forgets to pay attention to her surroundings and yelps when she comes in contact with something solid. Lucy pivots on her heel, finding herself looking up at black curtains edged with what looks to be a flame pattern along the bottoms and sides.

The blonde sighs in relief, shaking her head in amusement. "Get a grip on yourself, Lucy, there isn't anything there." Even though there may be no one else in the manner she still feels it would be more respectful to keep her voice low.

Taking a few deep, calming breaths she grabs the edge of the curtain in one hand, pulling it back to look outside. The windows are dirty, as she expects from the house being abandoned, but what she doesn't expect is to find her reflection looking back at her. She giggles at how ruffled her appearance is and focuses outward, looking past the dirt on the glass to find the setting moon shining upon the overgrown garden behind the man.

With her writer's mind, she pulls up the weeds, trims the overgrown branches, and waters her imagination to come to the conclusion that with some love and care the garden would indeed be spectacular.

Movement in the glass catches her attention and Lucy pulls her mind away from the garden, her eyes flicking up to find the appearance of another head over her shoulder. She turns around but finds no one there.

Still, she knows what she saw and she knows that she is the only one idiotic enough to come in here. So she turns, walking back to the ring of light given off by the candelabras. If they want to appear, let them. She refuses to be afraid.

 _ **XxX**_

Of all the things he could've done he just had to go and make _the_ most rookie mistake possible.

 _Stupid. Stupid. Stupid._ He lifts his lips in a silent snarl, quietly berating himself. _Stop acting like a newborn and catch your prey already!_

He wants to. And he can. With his speed, he could be on this human before she knows what's hit her. So why hasn't he? All he _has_ done since he found her searching his father's study is observed quietly from the shadows.

He's already found the reason for his hunger to be awakened, the copper scent coming from her hand more than enough to confirm his suspicion. But for the life of him, he can't figure out what it is about the woman with golden hair that stops him from feeding as he would if it were any other human.

Even now his mouth waters at the scent of blood trailing after her. Absentmindedly he licks his lips, watching her turn in a circle to look around the study. When a bitter tang hits his tongue he freezes, his eyes going wide.

" _The only time you will ever secrete venom is when you've found your soulmate."_

He steps back, ducking his head so that the hood of his cloak covers his hair, his mind going back to many years before. The room around him is no longer dark but lit by the streams of sunlight filtering in through the windows.

He finds himself standing in the middle of the room, facing a taller red-maned man he recognizes as his own father. His father steps out from behind the desk, a stack of papers in hand.

" _Why do we have to have a soulmate anyway? We already live way longer than the humans."_

His father sighs, looking over his half-crescent glasses at his younger self. " _Natsu, just because we may live so long doesn't mean we're not gonna want the same things as the humans. That includes companionship."_ The pinkette snorts in disagreement and his father scowls. " _Snort, huff, and puff all you want. Until you find that one person that sings to your being and you find venom lining your tongue you will be by yourself, lonely for all those years you so proudly claim over the humans."_

Then he hadn't thought anything positive of his father's words but now...staring at the golden-haired blonde attempting to be fearless even though her scent wears fear like he wears his cloak, he won't deny it. Not when the very same venom his father had warned of coats his tongue.

Now the pinkette understands why the call of her lifeblood has been different from his typical prey. Because it doesn't just call to his hunger, the siren calls to his being, luring him to what he knows will be a very happy ending and a brand new beginning.

If only he can convince her of this fact…

 _What was it Dad always said? There is always more than one way to hunt prey._ Natsu frowns, stepping closer to the ring of candlelight. _I wonder which way I will have to take to convince her she is my soulmate._

With the final thought, he pushes his hood off his head and steps into the first rings of candlelight. She hasn't noticed him yet, her back is to him as she looks across the room. However, that doesn't last long.

Shortly after she turns, her mouth dropping open when she spies him. Not only can he see her swallow but he can hear it, hear the dread that speeds up her heartbeat.

"Y-You. I-I saw you in the reflection in the window." It may not be a question, he still feels compelled to answer it with a nod, an eye intently reading her body language for any surprises she may spring. She scowls, setting the candle holder in her hand on the table. Good, if anything goes wrong he won't lose his home to the flames.

"What gives you the right to sneak up on someone like that, you could've given me a heart attack!" She pauses, scrutinizing him closely. "Just who the hell are you? I feel like I've seen you before but Magnolia is a small town and I know just about every face."

So Magnolia has grown during his hibernation? Good. If there is about to be another of his kind hunting among the humans they'll need a larger population and he does not wish to have to move so soon after waking up.

He grins, throwing his cloak out behind him as he dips into a bow. "Natsu Dragneel. A pleasure to meet your acquaintance Ms—" The pinkette purposefully leaves the statement open, a way for him to learn her name. She falls for it hook, line, and sinker, even offering him a small smile.

"Lucy."

Natsu arches an eyebrow. "Lucy?"

"Just Lucy is fine." And he shrugs. There will be plenty more time to learn more about each other, for now, he's satisfied her fear scent cloak is fading away.

"It is a very pretty name. If I remember it means Light in the olden language." Her guarded stance relaxes as her curiosity rises. She arches an eyebrow, moving to lean against one of the tables.

"And how would you know the olden language? All the elders who were raised with it and taught it have long since passed."

He grins. "My father, he was very persistent that I learn many languages." Understatement of the millennium. His father had pushed, pulled, and prodded until he knew at least one common language for every century he's lived. Even then he would be challenged to know how to write in the less common languages so nothing would be lost in translation. His hands had cramped for days after.

Suspicion of all things enters her scent. He can see when it meets her eyes for the warm amber begins to cool, putting up a stubborn guard. "Speaking of parentage. If I recall you said you're a Dragneel?"

Natsu nods. "That would be correct."

"How is that possible? The last Dragneel disappeared over a hundred years ago." The only clue he gives away to his shock is a single sharp inhale. He'd known he'd been hibernating for some time but he hadn't thought it had been that long.

However, that is not what worries him. His kind have been known to hibernate for upward of five centuries. No, his biggest concern is what he has to tell her.

" _Honesty is the biggest connection for any pair."_ His father has said to him once upon a time. " _If you are not honest with your mate, neither you or they will live long."_ He must tell her the truth. If she accepts that truth it will make the change that much easier. If she does not… It is not a thought he wishes to think but he knows it is a possibility.

There have been pairs in the past where their soulmate had not agreed and had been forced. He only hopes he will not have to force her, both to accept him and their bond.

As if to remind him of his choices, the venom on his tongue almost burns, like the lemon Ice-Prick had tricked him into eating when they were naught but two centuries old.

How exactly is he supposed to start this conversation? He's a vampire that drinks blood and whether she wants to accept it or not she's his soulmate and will become a vampire as well? _Haha, nope._ That would just be inviting trouble. He needs to be calm, collected, go about this in a smart fashion.

All things of which he can't do.

"Can I ask a question in return?" When she nods he takes a deep breath, mentally laying out his checklist of things to cover. First up on the list? Nothing to do with his parentage. _Awesome choice, Natsu._ He forces the voice in his head quiet, then looks her in the eye. "Do you believe in soulmates, Lucy?"

While she arches an eyebrow at the odd question she doesn't outright laugh at it, instead, taking on a thoughtful look. "Do I believe in soulmates?" He nods and she looks hesitant. "I won't outright turn down the idea. I mean the theory that there is a person for everyone holds it's appeal but I also like to think with a level head which demands that the theory will only remain a theory until proven otherwise. So in answer to your question I'll give it a fifty-fifty rating."

Okay...He can work with that. Now his final odd question.

"Do you believe in cryptids?"

Lucy frowns, her expression he can only describe as 'are you shitting me right now?' Her answer, on the other hand, surprises him. "You mean like dragons and mermaids and griffons, stuff like that?"

He nods.

"Actually," His hope rises hearing her tone change. She blushes, looking embarrassed. "I do. I've always felt there was more to the world then what we see."

The pinkette sighs in relief, leaning back to rest against the table mirror of hers. "I'm glad you said that. It makes easier for what I need to say."

He can't believe he's doing this. Being so open about a secret he's kept his entire life. What if she doesn't accept it? What if she screams and runs? _If she does, I'll do what I must._ And the voice is back. It terrifies him, how quickly his emotions are jumping back and forth just being near the blonde.

"To answer your original question, I am Igneel's son, heir to the Dragneel Estate. The titles, our wealth, it was all hidden before I 'disappeared,'" He raises in air quotes, not quite willing to look her in the eye. "That's where the question about the cryptids comes to play. I am a cryptid, my father was a cryptid, our family line all the way back to ancient Japan were," Natsu involuntarily flinches. He really doesn't want to scare her off. "I should say are cryptids."

 _Curiosity killed the cat,_ His mind supplies the statement as he looks over, finding Lucy looking like a deer caught in headlights. Finding she's still standing there instead of making a break for the door he retorts haughtily, _Satisfaction brought it back._

She's still stunned. Now's the best time to get the rest of it off his chest before he pops the largest bubble. He swallows, turning to look at his father's old desk.

"Cryptids can live for long periods of time, my line can live anywhere from three to four millennia. In exchange for our long life spans, however, we make a sacrifice. Once a millennium we fall into a sort of hibernation that can range anywhere from fifty years to the longest I've heard of lasting five centuries."

Quietly, he wonders if the note he left for his father before his hibernation set in is still there or if it's been lost during the last century. Would his father have seen it before he left to travel or had he missed him by just so much? Even knowing his father's hibernation isn't up for another century doesn't settle his nerves. The world is too vast for him to search by himself before it would be time for the man to slumber. With his father being so wealthy and important he's not even sure he'd be able to catch up with the man.

"What kind of cryptid are you?"

So caught up in his thoughts he doesn't realize Lucy has moved closer, now within arms reach. The suspicion he'd picked up in her scent is gone, all that's left now is pure curiosity. He frowns, finally lifting his head to meet her eye to eye.

"If I tell you, do you promise not to panic?" She nods and he takes a deep breath. This is it, do or die. "To the other cryptids we are known as the human shepherds, our job as written by the universe is basically population control. We do what we must to ensure human population doesn't run a risk to the world and its mortal and immortal balance."

Her mouth drops in shock, and she looks at him as if seeing him for the first. He, on the other hand, doesn't like the look. It's one thing to be feared, it is another to be studied like some big unknown being. He drinks human blood damn it, not guard the gates to the underworld. Cerberus does a fine job of that by herself.

Natsu grins, lifting a lip just enough to flash an elongated fang at her. "To you humans, we are what you call children of the night, or if you want to get particularly simple and ignore even the idea of there ever being different categories and clans you would call us—"

"Vampires." Lucy murmurs. "You're a vampire." When he doesn't deny it she inhales sharply, the dots appearing to connect in her head. Knowing what she knows now, he's curious to see what she'll do with the information. To his surprise, she frowns. "Two things bother me. Why didn't you know drink my blood or whatever you guys do and what was with the question about soulmates?"

The pinkette's grin melts into a grimace and he finally turns to face her, the bitter tang crowding his taste buds grabbing his attention for a fleeting second.

"There's a secret my kind keeps, both to protect it from those that would be willing to do wrong with it and because it's our deepest hope and fear. Like humans, we crave company. But that company differs on the kind of bond we're sharing. There's the family bond, that of parent to child and child to sibling, that's the bond we treasure as we grow up because you know they'll help you if you get into trouble and teach you what you need to know to face the world."

Slowly, she nods, following along with his explanation. It's good she's understanding this part, it makes the next part easier.

"Our biggest secret and our biggest hope; is that out there somewhere in the world is the one being that completes us, our soulmate. Unlike a familial bond, a soulmate bond is permanent. Whereas your sibling would leave to go explore the world or your parent settles down for hibernation and leaves you to wander the world, a soulmate would not. They're by your side for everything, from the time you first taste the venom on your tongue to your dying breath."

 _Wow._ He hadn't realized how much went into explaining the bonds. After the first few arguments with his father, he'd just kind of understood them. Though now as he pauses to catch his breath he has a feeling it's because it's been bred into his line for generations.

With his bit finished he watches Lucy almost nervously. From what he's seen already she's very smart so he hopes that she can make the right connections and make his job easier. At the very least he doesn't have to worry as much about her running. For that he is grateful.

 _ **XxX**_

Cryptids are real, vampires control the human population, the Dragneel family is a family of vampires, they all carry a secret soulmate that they can't live without, and she happens to be standing beside a vampire that looks like he's been hitchhiking for months on end...Is this some cheesy Hallmark movie?

Lucy honestly can't say at the moment. Her head is spinning with all this information and she _still_ has questions about some of the things the Dragneel heir has said. Even more than that though is the question of why tell _her_? Last she checked, she's still human and she highly doubts humans are supposed to know this kind of information.

There were some things the pinkette has stated, as if common knowledge, that she doesn't understand. Somehow, she has a feeling that common knowledge is what'll fill the gaps for her.

Nervously she chews on her bottom lip, a habit she's had for as long as she can remember, and turns to him. "Natsu, there was something you said that I don't understand. What do you mean by venom?"

She doesn't know if he knows it or not but he's like an open book to her. She can read almost every emotion that crosses his face. So much so she watches first confusion then startlement crosses his feathers; as if he'd been distracted by something and her question had surprised him.

The pinkette frowns. "What was that now?"

Quietly, she marvels how his speech has already changed from how formal it had been to closer to modern day dialogue, even if some of his statements still carry that formal pronunciation she guesses comes from old money teachings.

"When you were explaining about soulmates," Lucy says quietly. "You said something about 'a first taste of venom.' What did you mean by that?"

He sighs. "There are only two known ways of discovering our soulmates. The first is what you would expect which is by tasting their blood. My father would say that my mother's tasted sweeter than ripe watermelon, that is how he knew she was his soulmate because it had been sweeter and more succulent then anything he'd ever tasted. The second way is a bit more dangerous for our kind. If we smell the blood of our soulmate, it acts as a siren's call, drawing us to hunt until we find them." Natsu pauses, glancing up to ensure she's paying attention before continuing in a low voice.

"When we find our soulmate, we produce a special venom that is used only once, and that is to turn our soulmate. That's how we know we've found them because the venom lines our teeth and tongues, pushing us to claim our mates just to be rid of the taste."

 _I cut myself when I entered the building. He's told me some of vampire kind's closest held secrets. Does that mean…_

She exhales slowly, stepping in front of him to look him in the eye. With everything he's told her, she has a feeling this last question will change everything. "What does it taste like?"

He doesn't even have to answer. Just watching him grimace, running his tongue along his teeth is enough to confirm her theory.

 _Gods above, my soulmate is a vampire. Now, what do I do? Where do we go from here?_

Hesitantly she steps closer to him, her hand hovering inches from his cheek. When her hand comes in contact with his skin he jolts in surprise, looking at her with something akin to wild eyes.

"Running wouldn't do me any good would it?" The pinkette's lips lift into a sad smile and he shakes his head.

"No, running would just make it worse. It would be akin to dangling fresh meat in front of a starved wolf then snatching away just as he's about to grab it. It makes us go feral and we end up hurting our mate as we claim them."

She's may have only known this man for the span of a few short hours but already she has a better understanding of him then she has had of any of her previous boyfriends. It feels as if they've known each other for years instead of only half a night.

 _If this is what it means to meet your soulmate then I'll gladly take the consequences._

His jade eyes are changing, even as she watches they begin to swirl crimson, the color slowly spreading from the center out until she can no longer see the jade.

"Do what you have to." She can't believe she's doing this. Agreeing to be a vampire's—nay, a shepherd's mate. Apparently neither can he for he stares at her in awe, his mind working through her words before he grins darkly and lurches forward, one hand coming up to cup the back of her neck.

He drags his tongue along the skin of her neck, making her shiver from the sensation before she feels four small pins press against her skin. As he bites down her world goes white.

 _ **The next day...**_

Cana silently snarls, pacing back and forth across her living room. She should've known something was gonna happen. She _knew_ something would, but now, it being quarter past the time she dared the blonde to return she's worried. What if her prediction had been wrong? What if it hadn't worked and now her friend was dead?

She actually _liked_ the blonde. It's so hard to find anyone who's able to go through four bottles of wine without falling out. Now it looks like she may have to find another friend.

Juvia and Erza, both sitting on the couch out of the way of the irritated drunkard watch in amusement as she worries. They knew it was a ridiculous and suicidal dare, now they're having fun watching the brunette who issued it worry her pants off for their blonde friend.

Seconds before a knock sounds Cana changes her direction without breaking stride. The two on the couch miss this, however, too focused and quietly murmuring to each other. The brunette stalks up to the door, throwing it open with a scowl only to stop, her jaw dropping when she sees the pinkette standing behind her friend.

She shakes her head, turning to glare at Lucy. "You are late! I said Ten P.M."

The blonde giggles, lurching forward to hug her friend. "I know, and I'm sorry. I got caught up with something."

As they pull apart, Cana sets her hands on the blonde's shoulders, steadying her and her eyes narrow. Are those…? Her eyes go wide and she grins, pulling the blonde until the porch light is shining over her shoulder onto Lucy's face.

"Show me."

Lucy frowns, tilting her head in confusion. Thankfully Natsu gets the idea for he taps her shoulder, pointing to his smile as an example. When she turns back to face the brunette she smiles wide enough for the elongated canines to show in the light and Cana whoops in joy.

"It's about damn time."

"Cana? Is that Lucy?" The brunette frowns, looking over her shoulder into the apartment where she hears their friends slowly getting up. Then she looks back at Lucy, her voice dropping.

"Remember, keep it quiet."

Lucy nods and Cana steps aside, allowing the duo to step into her apartment. As she follows after them, closing the door behind her Juvia and Erza step into the hall, smiling in relief when they catch sight of their blonde friend.

Juvia's the first to rush her, hugging the living daylights out of her. "Lucy, I thought you were a goner!"

The blonde giggles, walking toward the kitchen with both women in tow. Once they disappear around the corner the brunette turns on Natsu, scowling playfully. "You took your time waking up."

He shrugs sheepishly, scratching the back of his freshly shaved head. "Hey, it shocked me too when I found out an entire century had passed." Then he tilts his head to the sound of the giggling trio, casting a judgemental eye over the brunette. "I'm not gonna ask how you wheedled my soulmate out of your cards but this is the only time I'm gonna thank you for it."

Cana's entire demeanor changes, her shoulders slumping in relief and her chocolate eyes softening. "After you helped me out with reconnecting with my pa, I figured it's the least I could do. You do realize a lot has changed since you went into hibernation, right?"

The pinkette nods, glancing up at the kitchen door.

"Yeah, Luce has been filling me in on a lot of it, but it'll take some time for me to get used to it. Now is there anything else because I would like to join my mate."

Cana grins, revealing sharpened fangs. "Just one thing, we gotta celebrate your lazy ass waking up."

He chuckles, raising an arm to the kitchen door. "Lead the way." With that he follows her through the door, finding the trio of women already opening bottles of wine.

* * *

 **Points allocated to anyone who knows the reference I snuck in and what series it's from!**

 ***pauses***

 ***taps glass* Hellooo! Anyone in there? Hope y'all ain't left me just because I pulled the cliche vamp card. I mean come on! I had to. It just worked too well with this one. And besides, I quite liked making Natsu like this. BTW!**

 **Did anyone see the twist at the end? That's why Mira got pissed at me, because I thought she was following along, blurted out the end and spoiled it for her. XD Now she won't stop stalking me with the bueller. Whatever that is. Anyway, it's one A.M. I have plans for later today and I still need to finish tomorrow's oneshot.**

 **That said, I've decided to change things up. Now tomorrow's prompts are virtuous and wicked but come now, you know me. *grins evily* Ladies, gentlemen, Deadpool, be on the look out for Robin Hood!**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**

 **Deadpool: Whoa whoa whoa, hold up, you can't just leave them like that!**

 **Grizz: *glares* why can't I?**

 **DP: Because you can't!**

 **Grizz: Shut it, Wade. My stories, my rules, it even says so in the guide.**

 **DP: *scowls* Bueller!**

 **Grizz: Folks, you might not wanna witness this. I'll see y'all tomorrow. In the meantime, *grabs chains* I've always wondered what happened if your head was decapitated.**


	5. Robin Hood

**Back for another day! *cackles***

 **Summary: He's a thief but when he finds a college student that has almost nothing he decides that showing kindness never hurt anyone. And hey, if she doesn't ask where it comes from he won't have to answer, right? Virtuous/ Wicked mix because I couldn't come up with anything better that I liked for just Wicked**.

* * *

Day 4: Robin Hood

"Now, what is Polonius' advice to Laertes?" Gods, someone help her before she dies of boredom. If she had wanted to learn of Hamlet, she would've signed up for a drama course. Instead, she's stuck listening to her teacher drone on and on and on and on and shit!

She ducks her head to make it look like she's reading the textbook. The one thing she doesn't want is for her teacher to catch her imagining horns sprouting from his head...again.

"Ah, Miss Heartfilia," Fuck a duck. The scent of cigar smoke comes from behind her. Biting back a groan, she looks over her shoulder to find the graying brunette of an English teacher standing in the aisle.

She swallows, offering the teacher a small smile. "Yes, Mister Wakaba?"

The cigar on his lip quivers as he grins. He walks past, looking at the board where several phrases from the horrid play are written in marker. "Miss Heartfilia, please refresh the class's memory on the advice Polonius gives to Laertes."

Why, oh why, did I choose this class again?

"Uh," She freezes. She's already read the scene last night but even the time between then and now wasn't enough time for her to even begin to understand it. I'm not the only one who doesn't understand it. Might as well just get the shits and giggles done with. "Polonius tells Laertes to—"

"Polonius' advice to Laertes is that he needs to choose his words carefully. To watch his feet, be careful of the fights he gets into, keep his friends close, listen when advice is given but not always voice his own and to always be true to himself!"

That's why. The blonde slumps in relief, looking across the room at the bluenette wearing an orange sundress and matching headband holding her hand up. She throws a smile at the bluenette, receiving one in return.

Mister Wakaba frowns, his cigar looking about to fall out of his mouth. "Yes, thank you, Levy, for your wonderful answer. Miss Heartfilia, since Miss Mcgarden so enthusiastically answered that question please answer this one. What is Laertes' advice to Ophelia?"

Screw a guinea, you just have it out for me today, don't you? She knows it's not possible, that he's just doing his job as their torturer but she still hates it. Thankfully for her, she doesn't have to worry.

The bell rings, signaling the end of the class. Grabbing her stuff, the blonde doesn't bother to shove it in her bag before booking it out of the room. She has somewhere she needs to be in twenty minutes and the place is half an hour across town. Racing down the hall full of students, she dips under a large canvas being hefted by two art majors, spins around the swording wielding theatre student who in turn calls out a greeting to her, and then she's rushing the door to the tradecrafts center.

Carpentry? No. Kitchen? No. Plumbing? No. Dammit, where is—ah! She smirks, taking the corner to welding at full speed. As she approaches the double doors to one of the most dangerous places on campus she quickly shoves her book in her bag, ensuring the papers inside won't get caught in the zipper before she closes the bag bursting through the doors.

She said to turn left at the— Ahead she spies the large containers of oxygen used for the welding classes and grins. Oxygen tanks! Throwing her bag over her shoulder she makes the turn, spotting the man she's looking for standing with a couple of his friends beside an open garage door.

"Gajeel!" The man in question turns, his studded eyebrows rising at the sight of the running blonde.

"Bunny girl, what are you doing?!"

"No time!" She skids to a stop in front of his group, her hands on her knees as she catches her breath. "Levy said I could have your keys. Please? My boss messed up my schedule and I need to be there in fifteen minutes."

His scowling expression softens and he reaches into his pocket. "Yeah, Bunny girl. Just don't get it scratched."

"I won't I promise!" The blonde grins, snatching the keys from his hand, already running for the garage door. Outside, she spots the lifted blackish gray Dodge parked across the parking lot. On the driver's side, she grabs the arm of the side mirror to hoist herself up to the door handle and unlocks the door with one hand. When the lock clicks she leaps down, grabbing the handle to pull the door open before launching herself up the running boards and into the driver's seat. Putting the key into the start, she turns it over, exhaling in relief when the engine starts with a roar.

Without waiting she throws her bag into the passenger side seat, closes the door and pulls out of the parking spot, only remembering her seat belt when she gets to the stop sign on the main road.

Now to beat the traffic to work. Having learned how to drive in her friend's boyfriend's truck, she effortlessly weaves through traffic, managing to relax on the drive as well.

Ten minutes later, the blonde pulls into a parking lot outside a bustling restaurant. Parking the truck she turns the engine off, falling back in the seat with a sigh. She glares at the opulent building in front of her, wishing the place would burn.

Then her phone alarm goes off and she sighs, opening the truck door. Wonder how today turns out.

Locking the truck, she walks across the parking lot to the building, entering through the side door to the kitchen. As she passes through the chatter of the cooks and the clatter of dishes, amidst the sound of food bubbling and sizzling meets her ear.

"Lucy!"

The blonde stiffens, turning to find a guy with ginger hair dressed in a fancy suit and tie standing in front of the door to the front of the restaurant. He smiles, pushing up the green tinted glasses resting on his nose.

"Hello, Loke."

Loke walks up to her, his smile turning to a smirk. "Why, lovely lady, I just knew you would make it here on time." Then he turns to a large man standing in front of a stove cooking what looks to be a steak. "Taurus, you have dish duty the rest of the week!"

The black-haired cook groans. "Miss Lucy, yooou couldn't have been late just toooday?"

Her eye twitches with the restraint she has to use on her anger. She crosses her arms over her chest, glaring at them both.

"Let me get this straight. You asked Aquarius to mix up my hours just so you two could do a bet?"

The men seem to realize their mistake because Taurus turns around, whistling a tune as he plates the steak. Loke, on the other hand, smiles in an attempt to disarm the angered student. "Now, Lucy. We meant no disrespect. We just wanted to see if you really would be here on time even so soon after your class was over."

She growls, picking up a large kitchen knife to jab at him. "Of course I would be here, Loke. I need this job. But that's not what makes me mad, it's that you made me ask my friend's boyfriend to borrow his truck to get here on time. You of all people know I don't have a car." To add emphasis to each word, she pokes the sharp knife closer to his body each time.

Loke swallows, backing up until his back is pressed to the wall. With the knife aimed over his head, he closes his eyes, turning his head to wait for the final strike. There's a muted thump in front of his face and he opens his eyes to find the knife a mere half inch from his nose. He yelps, leaping away from it as he feels his nose.

The blonde leaves him like that, walking to the computer kiosk beside the doors leading to the front of the restaurant. She signs in, reaching for a waitress apron hanging beside the tech when the doors open. She looks up, smiling at the pink-haired woman sweeping through with a platter tucked under her arm.

"Hi, Aries! Just getting off?"

The waitress smiles in return, setting her platter down beside the computer. "Hi, Lucy. Yes, I am. I was just waiting for you to get here so I could go."

She arches an eyebrow, tying the apron around her waist. "How'd you know I was here?" The shy woman points at the knife both Loke and Taurus are trying to get out of the wall. They share a giggle and Lucy picks up the platter. "Alright, get your boyfriend out of here and I'll take over the front of the house. Who else is already out there?"

Aries hums, logging out of the computer.

"Virgo, Sagi, Scorpio, and the twins. Capricorn is manning the door, Libra and Yukino have the night off and Cancer and Ophiuchus are manning the bar."

Lucy nods. "Thanks, Aries. Go ahead and get out here. I'll see you tomorrow."

The pinkette pauses in her steps, frowning at her. "Lucy, did you forget you have off tomorrow?"

She turns away, walking over to where Loke and Taurus puzzle over the scratch left in the knife and Lucy sighs. No, she hadn't remembered that and quite honestly, she doesn't think she would've if her co-worker hadn't said something.

Pushing open one of the doors she pauses at the top, looking over the tables sprawled across the floor. Some, the ones she guesses are the ones Aries covered, are empty; the glasses and plates already being cleared by the blue-hair twins commonly known as Gemi and Mini, or if they're in trouble just as Gemini. Lucy snorts, watching the duo rush around.

Gemini alright, they do everything as one. Even playing pranks on the others. Speaking of which… Turning down the steps she grabs a notebook out of the small basket set on the railing for the purpose. I wonder how that prank they were planning on Virgo went.

She walks up to her first table of the night, the smile on her lips derived from the joy of the people of this restaurant she's come to call family.

"Hello, welcome to The Zodiac, I'm Lucy. I'll be your waitress for the night." The table of four, she's guessing to be a family affair looks over their menus but the mother and father look up as she speaks. "Can I start you off with some drinks?"

The Zodiac, the only restaurant in the town of Magnolia with a solid four-star rating. It's small compared to other popular restaurants in the surrounding cities and towns but the food is good, the employees are welcoming, and everyone in town knows it's the best place to go for good grub.

Taking down drinks, Lucy feels her smile begin to stretch. Well, besides the fact the lead waiter is a pervert, the owner is a witch and a half, and the head cook talks like a cow and wears a cowbell.

She turns away from the table, walking back to the kitchen to fill the drinks. I just hope tonight is a good night.

Eight hours later, as the restaurant is getting ready to close Lucy can arguably say the opposite. The tips in her pocket, the very money she needs to live until payday is the lowest it's been in a while, her face aches from having to force herself to smile all night, and more then once she's had to remind herself her job is more important than shoving someone's plate in their face because of some snide remark.

As she walks the check to the last table of the night she can't wait for her shift to end. Coming up to the table she plasters on her smile once more.

"Here's your check, I hope you enjoyed your meal." The old man dressed in a nice suit and tie grumbles, opening the black book as Lucy walks away, grabbing some of the empty glasses off another empty table to help the twins out.

Carrying the glasses over to an extra tub sitting at a partially cleaned table she jumps in surprise when the teenage blue-haired twins appear in front of her, one holding a tub of dishes, the other carrying a rag and bottle of spray.

"Let us," The one on the left states calmy followed by the one on the right gesturing to the cups adding, "take that."

More than used to their odd way of finishing each other's sentences she smiles genuinely, setting the cups down in the bin. "Thanks, you two. My last table is just clearing out so let me know if you need any help."

"Will do." They chirp together, turning to finish cleaning the table with a speed only they have mastered. She shakes her head, going back to the table to find the old man has gone and the black book sitting closed on the table. Opening the book Lucy feels her eye twitch at the great fat zero drawn through the tip line.

So much for eating tonight. She sighs, snapping the book closed and walking back to the register to set the receipt with the others of the night. Looking over the restaurant, she finds the last customers walking out the door. Her co-worker, an elderly man with graying hair, Capricorn, holding the door open for them in his usual gentlemanly way. Once the last customers are out, he locks both sets of glass doors and she has to bite back a giggle at the way his shoulders fall in relief.

Tonight had indeed been one of their busier nights. What with the town having a football game at the local sports field conveniently located a hundred yards from the restaurant. Needless to say, their small staff of twelve are exhausted.

Lucy turns, grabbing one of the filled tubs waiting to be sent to the kitchen and walks it through to where Taurus and a mother and son duo are working through the mountain of dishes to be washed. She sets the tub down on the line leading to the sinks and turns back to the doors.

Going back down the stairs, she stops when she hears her name called and turns to find a man in a silver suit approaching her. His copper hair is spotted with several white streaks, easily spotted in the light.

She reminds herself she's no longer in front of customers and her smile lessens to a smaller but more genuine version. "Hi, Scorpio. I thought you and Aquarius had a date tonight?"

Aquarius being her boss and the owner of The Zodiac, she knows the short-tempered bluenette doesn't get much free time to spend with her husband. Rumors had been abound for the past week that the two would take a night off and leave the main worries to Loke and Capricorn—their typical choices for second in command.

He chuckles, reaching up to scratch the small neatly groomed beard he keeps year round. "No, not until tomorrow. I just came over to say you could leave early if you wanted to. The twins are working double time to clean the tables and with Taurus losing that bet, he can handle the rest of the dishes."

Almost immediately her mind goes to the massive amount of college work she has to do in the next week. She nods. "Thank you, Sir, I think I will."

The man grins. "Anytime. Now you best get to running before my wife finds out I let you off."

Forget being mad at him for being part of the bet, she's just happy he's letting her do this. She walks back into the kitchen, already untying her apron even as she approaches the kiosk. Any other night she'd be willing to stay until all the cleaning is done but thinking about all the work she has to do, she's more than willing to leave early.

Lucy hangs up her apron and rushes for the back door, only coming to a stop when one of the cooks step into the aisle, arms loaded with pots and pans.

The woman frowns, looking at the clock on the wall and back at her. "Lucy, what are you doing? You're not usually off for another fifteen minutes."

"Scorpio let me off early." She grins. "Now, I have to hurry before Aquarius can catch me. Now can you please let through, Yang?"

The woman chuckles, backing up a step. "Sure, go ahead."

As if on cue they hear, "Where is the brat?!" come through the doors.

Lucy looks over her shoulder, finding the silhouettes of Scorpio and her boss standing on the other side. "Yeah, I should probably be going."

Even as she speaks her feet are taking her around the woman, toward the side door where her bag sits.

About an hour into her shift, Gajeel had come by for his truck. She had left her bag in his truck so when he left, he'd set it inside the door for her. Grabbing her bag, she rushes out the door, taking off down the sidewalk at a quick pace.

The further she is, the less chance Aquarius will come after her. Though, as she comes to a stop at the first light she has a feeling the woman would come after her anyway.

Ten minutes later, she considers herself lucky that she picked an apartment located nearly halfway between the restaurant and the college.

Her excitement has worn off, leaving her to drag her feet up the steps to her front door then stumbling on in when she finally manages to unlock it. Her bag lands somewhere near where she knows her table to be and the blonde stumbles across the half living half kitchen into the only other door beside the bathroom. She grunts, turning her around so she falls into the blankets.

Lucy sighs, her eyes on the watermarked ceiling above. Another day done, another day gone. How much more will it take?

With that she rolls over, her blanket coming with it to cocoon her in its comfort.

XxX

Standing in the shadow of the alley across from the darkened apartment is a man in a sleeveless hoodie. His eyes, hidden within the hood, are dark and unreadable. When no lights are seen through the window, the man steps into the light of the street lamp, illuminating the sleeve of scales tattooed on his right arm. Stepping directly under the lamp illuminates the red scales darkened to black along the edges.

He seizes his chance, darting across the abandoned road to come up under one of the apartment's windows. The man leans up, peeking through the window. What he finds inside baffles him so much he pulls away, his brows narrowing in confusion. Surely… He shakes his head, looking back through the window. Nope, still the same. Now, he has to feed his curiosity.

Pulling a miniature tape measure from his pocket, he pries the edge under the window sill. Once it's in, he tilts the tape to get the measuring part in then angles it so it bends in the shape of an upside down 'v'. The support added by the angle has the window pushing up surprisingly easily and he arches an eyebrow. Is it so bad they don't even bother to lock the windows?

When the window is wide enough for him to put his fingers in, he retracts the tape, placing it back in his pocket. He slides the window open all the way than launches himself through it, landing in the living room. He turns around and…

His mouth drops in shock.

Yeah, it's that bad.

The thief had thought he'd been seeing things when he looked through the window but now, standing in the middle of an empty living room, he can say he wasn't imagining it. There's no couch, no television, not even pictures to line the walls. It feels as if the place is still waiting to be rented.

He turns, his eyes landing on the linoleum of the kitchen and his frown deepens. There's not even a legitimate table or chairs. He's seen people from his neighborhood use old wire spools as tables before but usually just for sitting outside, it being easier to allow them to get ruined then set out an actual table. Never, never, in his twenty years of life has he seen someone have to use an old wire spool as an indoor table. To match the decrepit scene, he only finds a milk crate flipped upside down to be used as a chair.

As he walks past the so-called table into the kitchen, his focus is so intent on the empty kitchen he misses the bookbag sitting against the base of the spool.

Standing in the middle of the kitchen he swallows. There may be three dishes sitting on the drying rack beside the sink, a significant lack of a microwave. Opening the fridge door, he finds it completely empty save a half-full bottle of water.

Damn, I've seen bad shit but this has to be the worst. How can someone live like this?

So shocked is he, he misses the sound of movement from the other room. He doesn't realize the occupant of the apartment has woken until the kitchen light turns on.

The thief turns, finding a blonde dressed in a black polo and black slacks. The fact she has large bags under her eyes tells the man she's lacking in sleep. Instantly he feels bad for waking her, but the state of her apartment still leaves him questioning his motives.

"You have three seconds to tell me who you are and what you're doing in my apartment before I call the police."

Scratchy voice? Tired, possibly coming down with something. In other words, she's working her butt off too much for not enough in return. Ouch, been there, done that. Still hate it.

He clears his throat, lowering his hoodie to reveal short spiked salmon pink locks and onyx eyes to the blonde. "I was gonna rob you but," He gestures at the space around them. "I'll be damned if I tried to take anything. You ain't got nothing to take."

It's obviously the wrong thing to say because of the way her eyes narrow and she marches up to him, showing one very long, very sharp nail in his face. "Listen here, you tit twat, on top of working my ass off ten hours a night, I also have to go to college. College is very expensive so I only get enough to pay my bills and that is it."

Shit! Shit! Shit! Angry blonde. Gotta think fast.

If there is anything he's learned living in his neighborhood, it's that men get to live longer if they don't piss off the women. He still has the scars to show for one such mistake involving cake and a very dear friend of his…

He holds up his hands, an act of surrender. "Look, I didn't mean to insult you. I was just shocked. I've seen some bad shit go down 'round here and been to some shitty places but I ain't never seen a place look as empty as yours is." Wasn't he and his friends just casing some other joints with good furniture? His expression brightens and he grins. "In fact, here, I'll make you a deal."

The thief can tell he has her interest. The blonde student hesitates, her arm slowly falling. Then her expression hards and she crosses her arms over her chest.

"Alright, I'm listening."

The guys are gonna kill me when they hear about this.

"Look," He states calmly. "I'm gonna leave but I'll be back in an hour. To prove this, if I'm not back in exactly sixty minutes from when I step out that door you can call the cops."

She's suspicious, he can tell. Honestly, he would be too if he was in her place. So to prove his point he reaches into his pocket, pulling out his wallet and handing it to her. "If I'm not back in the hour tell the cops I broke in, you caught me, I fled and dropped my wallet. Just...just give me an hour and I promise I'll be back."

The blonde hesitantly nods, her gaze boring into him. "Sixty minutes from the time you step out that door."

Good, it's all I need. He walks to the door, finding surprisingly unlocked, setting his hand on the handle. Looking over his shoulder, onyx eyes meet tired chocolate. "Sixty minutes starting now."

With that, he throws the door open and takes off at a sprint. He'll need the speed if he and his team are to get everything he wants to.

XxX

Finding herself alone in her apartment, Lucy sighs. She hadn't thought when she got up to get a glass of water, she'd find a thief standing in her kitchen dumbfounded by the lacking amount of items she has. College is expensive. Such that whatever doesn't go into her bills goes to paying for her classes and supplies. She just hasn't had enough extra to buy any furniture, let alone enough food to hold her over from week to week.

When her stomach rumbles, she walks to the fridge, praying to the gods that by some miracle she'll find more than when she looked this morning before she left for school. Opening her fridge she finds...a half-empty water bottle.

The blonde growls in annoyance, snatching the bottle off the shelf and turns away, walking over to her table. Might as well get some work done while I'm waiting. She grabs up her school bag, unzipping it to pull out the papers and notebooks for her classes and gets to work.

Sometime later as she's working through her stupid lit class, there's a knock on the door. Grumbling about how idiotic her teacher is she gets up, walking to the door and looking through the peephole to find the pinkette standing there grinning. Lucy glances at her watch, shocked to find him an entire fifteen minutes earlier then he had asked for.

Still, she opens the door, showing him standing in front of a couple other guys carrying different pieces of furniture. The pinkette steps up, opening up the doorway for his friends to come through and holds up a brown paper bag with familiar golden arches and a drink.

"See? I told ya I'd be back."

Lucy's too shocked to reply. A buff muscled man with white hair and a slimmer, albeit still buff, blonde-haired man are hefting a couch down in front of the wall. Another man, this one with raven black hair and missing a shirt is carrying a television while another black-haired man and a bluenette haul in a tv stand?

The second black-haired man has her taking a second look and she sputters. "Gajeel? You know these guys?"

The welding student grins, setting the tv stand down. While his partner walks back out the door, he approaches her. "Yeah, Bunny girl. Ya really think I'mma let my cuz do something like this without my help?"

Without waiting for an answer, he walks back out the door. The pinkette walks up beside her, holding up the bag of food. "Here, we can do introductions afterward. For now, eat up and we'll finish moving everything in."

Her stomach rumbles, reminding her of the fact she hadn't eaten the entire day and she gratefully accepts the food, walking into the kitchen to sit on the counter and eat while she watches the group move in an actual table with four real chairs followed by a microwave.

What catches her attention though, is when the bluenette opens her freezer, putting in too many microwaveable meals for her to count. After he's finished, the group crashes in the new chairs with Natsu sidling up beside her.

Lucy looks down, surprised to find his smile is genuine. That is when everything sets in. This stranger, who she just met an hour and a half ago, that was gonna rob her is she had anything to be taken has just filled her apartment with furniture and her freezer with enough dinners to last her a month.

Though the damn doesn't break until he facepalms, stating nonchalantly, "Oh, and I think I got you a bed but I won't be able to bring that tomorrow."

Her eyes fill with tears and she slides off the counter, stumbling into his chest to give him a hug. "T-th-thank you. Just thank you."

The pinkette softens, returning the hug. "You're welcome."

After a minute longer, she pulls away, wiping her nose and looks to the others. "Thank you, all of you."

Gajeel huffs, pointing a gloved thumb at the pinkette. "Don't look at us, it was all Fire-fart's idea."

In answer, the thief perks up, slinging an arm over her shoulder. "Oh yeah, I told ya I'd introduce ya." She nods and he points at the welding student. "You already know metal-head but there's also Elfman, Laxus—my other cousin, Jellal, and Ice Prick."

The way too buff white-haired man nods, followed by the blonde, then the bluenette who'd been stuffing her freezer, and finally, the raven-haired guy missing his shirt.

Lucy frowns at the final one, turning to the man. "Ice Prick?"

He scowls, glaring at the pinkette. "I do ice sculpting for a living. Flame Brain got it into his head that because I got my tongue stuck to a sculpture once, once, I deserve the name. My real name's Gray."

She gives him a small smile then turns to the pinkette.

"Now I know your friends but I have yet to know your name."

Her statement seems to surprise the others because they all groan, one of two of them facepalming as Gajeel glares at him. "For fuck's sake, Natsu! She doesn't even know your name?"

The pinkette rests a hand on the back of his neck, grinning sheepishly. "I didn't think to tell her. I thought she would've looked at my wallet while I was gone. Speaking of which," He turns, holding out a hand to her. "Can I have it back, please?"

She giggles, pulling the item from her pocket. Natsu, summer, I like it. It fits him.

As she hands it back to him, Gajeel grunts, getting to his feet. "Alright, ya idiots, we gotta get going. Bunny girl's got classes in the morning."

The others begin pulling out, waving their goodbye to the blonde but when Natsu moves to follow she grabs his wrist. "Wait." He turns to her, arching an eyebrow. She looks him in the eye, wanting to see his answer for herself. "Why did you help me? You could've just ran."

Natsu grins. "What are friends for?"

With that he's gone, closing the door behind him and leaving her to her newly furnished apartment.

XxX

The next day, sitting at her new kitchen table, her work spread around her, Lucy nearly misses the knock on her door. When she hears it, she sends a silent prayer to the gods for getting out grinding her brain to mush over Hamlet. The knock sounds again and she rolls her eyes.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Hold your horses!"

With that she reaches the door, unlocking the single bolt she uses during the day. The blonde opens the door, smiling when she finds the pinkette standing there with Elfman and Laxus holding a bedframe behind him.

He grins. "Hey, Luce. Brought ya the bed."

She arches an eyebrow, opening the door further to admit the men. "Luce? Where did that come from?"

Laxus chuckles, flicking Natsu in the head as he passes. "When we got back to the bar last night, we discovered he didn't actually get your name. Gajeel told him after a round of brawling but now I guess he has his own nickname for ya, blondie."

"You're a blondie too, Laxus." She rolls her eyes, turning to Natsu, only to find him looking hesitant.

"Are you okay with me calling you that?"

The college student nods. "Yeah, Natsu, I quite like it actually."

Natsu grins. As the men pass him to go back out to the truck, Laxus huffs. "For fuck's sake, Natsu, ask her out already!"

Lucy giggles, watching the thief blush in embarrassment. He shrugs, avoiding looking her in the eye.

"There's a bar on the other side of the hood called Fairy Tail, I was wondering if maybe you would want to go get a drink with me?" He may not want to look in her eye, but she wants to. She wants to see the onyx eyes of the man who has so helped her. She steps forward, catching his chin in her hand and forcing him to look at her.

Then she leans down, close enough to whisper in his ear. "I would love to. I'll meet you there at seven." With that, she pecks his cheek, backing away to mask her own blush.

Natsu's mouth drops open, leaving him gaping like a fish. Thankfully, Elfman and Laxus come to his rescue, each man looping an arm through his and hauling him out the door.

* * *

 **Right, so before I end up destroying my phone I'm just gonna leave it here.**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


	6. Blessing

**Beep Boop.**

 **Summary: Lucy counts her blessings whenever she lays eyes upon her daughter. Salmon hair, onyx eyes, and sharp teeth, though the sight burns her heart she is and will forever be grateful to the man that sacrificed his life for them.**

* * *

Day 5: Blessing

" _Oi Salamander!" The pinkette perks up, leaning out from behind the truck to see his cousin standing in the garage doorway._

" _Yeah, Metalhead?"_

 _His cousin grunts, a rag in one hand, he throws the opposite thumb over his shoulder. "Ya got a visitor."_

 _He frowns, leaping off the back of the truck. When his cousin walks back to his position under the hood revealing the blonde standing there he grins._

" _Luce! What are you doing here? I thought you were at home resting?" The blonde, Lucy, giggles, walking forward to wrap her arms around the pinkette._

" _I was but the little one wouldn't sit still so I thought we'd come down to see you."_

 _He returns the hug, kissing her in greeting before his hand slides down to her rounded stomach. When he feels the baby kick he chuckles, crouching to get closer._

" _Hey, now, little one. You're supposed to behave for your Mama while I'm gone. No need to have her scurrying to me just because you miss me."_

 _Lucy smiles, her hands on her back for some relief and she giggles watching her husband speak to their child. "They missed you just as much as I did." Then she pouts. "It sucks not having you around, Natsu. There's no one to rub my feet or feed me ice cream."_

 _The pinkette gets to his feet, his hands resting over his heart. "Oh, how your words wound me, babe. To know that I'm no more needed then a free masseuse and ice cream connoisseur." He leans forward, kissing her lips lightly. "I promise, Luce. Makarov's already declared today's my last day at the station before I get the next week off. When I get home I'll fix you all the ice cream you want and massage your swollen feet every morning and night."_

 _She smiles softly, hugging him again. "Just as long as you get to be ours again the little one and I will be happy."_

 _An alarm rings, breaking up their moment and Natsu steps back, looking over his shoulder as others begin to file into the garage. He looks back, smiling regretfully. The blonde shakes her head._

" _Go, it's your job after all." And he rushes off._

 _One by one everyone suits up, leaping onto the cherry red trucks as they start up. As the fire trucks pull out, she waves with one hand, the other set in the small of her back._

" _Be safe my firefighter."_

 _ **Six years later…**_

"Nashi! You better be in bed by the time I get up there or else no bedtime story."

The pink-haired girl playing with her doll freezes, her mouth dropping in an 'o' shape before she drops the doll in the toy box and races for her black and red dragon-shaped bed. Just as she finishes pulling up the covers her mother walks in the door.

Lucy smiles, seeing her daughter already in bed and moves to sit on the edge. "Now there's a good little princess."

Her daughter whines, pulling the blanket over her head. "Mama! I told you I'm not a princess."

The blonde is amused. She leans forward, pulling the blanket down to her onyx eyes. "Okay then. If you're not a princess then what are you?"

Nashi grins. "I'm a dragon!"

She arches an eyebrow. "Oh, really?" Her daughter nods. "Then what does a dragon do?"

"Dragons breathe fire, capture princesses and get to fly through the sky!"

Lucy hums, leaning closer. "Do you know what else dragons do?"

Her daughter takes on a thoughtful look, her bottom lip quivering in thought. For a moment a sharp pain of grief stabs her heart with ice like tendrils. Even after so long the simplest expressions remind her…

After a moment Nashi shakes her head and Lucy grins. "They listen when their mothers tell them to go to bed instead of playing with their toys." And she attacks her daughter with a swift brutal tickle attack that has tears of laughter sliding down her daughter's tan cheeks.

She leans back eventually, allowing her daughter to catch her breath. When Nashi catches her breath she frowns, looking her mother over with as much an appraising eye as a six-year-old can take.

"Mama?" Lucy looks up, meeting her daughter's eye.

"Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Why don't I have a Daddy?" The blonde tenses, her chocolate brown eyes searching her daughter's face for an explanation. Finding none she frowns.

"Why would you ask that, sweetheart?"

Nashi looks away, her fingers playing with one of the tassels that make up the thirteen constellations sewn into her blanket.

"It's just Silver and Mercury were talking about how their Daddies have really important jobs and that your job doesn't count because it's just you and you're not a Daddy you're my Mama."

Lucy smiles sadly, lurching forward to wrap her daughter in a hug. "Oh, Nashi, my dear dear dragon. You do have a Daddy he's just off doing a much more important job with much more important people."

Nashi burrows into her mother's neck for comfort. "Then why don't I get to see him like Silver and Mercury do theirs?"

Leaning back, Lucy pulls Nashi into her lap and leans with her back to the wall. She falls quiet for a minute, getting her thoughts into order before she states quietly, "Let me tell you your bedtime story then I'll explain why Daddy isn't here, that okay?"

Nashi nods and again Lucy falls quiet until…

"Once upon a time there lived a strong and brave warrior whom everyone called Salamander. He lived in a large castle with lots of other brave and strong people that he considered his family. Now this castle, this castle was important because they looked out for everyone in the kingdom from the silly cats who would get themselves stuck in trees to people who were hurt or in trouble."

Nashi leans into her mother's chest, her voice beginning to lull the child.

"Salamander and everyone in the castle were beloved by everyone throughout the land. One day, when Salamander was walking through town he met a beautiful blonde haired baker woman selling her goods at the market."

The pinkette looks up at her mother through her bangs. "What happened then, Mama?"

Lucy smiles. "I'm getting to it, sweetheart. Have patience." Her daughter nods and the blonde continues just as quietly. "The baker woman and Salamander became fast friends and not long after the two fell in love. Because of his place in the castle Salamander never knew if the next was promised to him so he was quick to ask for the baker woman's hand in marriage. Being so in love with the warrior she agreed and soon after they were married living—what they thought was—a happy life."

"And they lived happily ever after?"

She arches an eyebrow, leaning down to look her daughter in the eye. "I thought I was the one telling the story?"

Nashi blushes in embarrassment, burrowing her face into her mother's chest. "Sorry, Mama."

The blonde chuckles, resting a hand on her head. "Not long after they were married Salamander and his wife found out she was pregnant. They were gonna have a baby! Oh, the brave warrior couldn't be prouder. He told any who would listen and some who wouldn't just so he could say it. He, the brave warrior, Salamander was going to be a father."

Memories are flooding her mind, of the very same pinkett jumping for joy at the news. Of long sleepless nights, and early morning feedings, an empty bed, and many many empty condolences. She closes her eyes yet a small tear manages to escape, slowly trailing down her cheek. Lucy swallows, leaning down to kiss her daughter's head.

"Shortly before his baby was due, Salamander and the entire castle was called out for an emergency. An important building had caught fire and there were many people trapped inside. Salamander being the brave warrior he was, ran in to save them. He was not alone, oh no, there many from the castle and other castles as well who had been called to help but it was not enough. There were some who couldn't be saved."

Nashi, noticing her mother's tears sits up and begins wiping them away. She doesn't understand why her mother is crying but she does know that if her mother wipes away her tears then she too will wipe away her mother's.

"What happened to Salamander and his wife?"

Lucy sighs, looking her daughter in the eyes. "Nashi, there are times when the Gods decide that someone is needed elsewhere, in another world, to fight in a battle we can't see and when the Gods call we must go no matter how ready we are to leave our lives and our loved ones behind."

Her daughter pauses, onyx eyes going wide at the explanation. However, Lucy knows that if she stops she won't be able to start again. Not here. Not now. "When Salamander rescued those people the Gods decided his job on Earthland was done and that they needed his strength in another world. When they found out the people in the castle and his wife cried. But when Salamander left to help the Gods he left behind a final gift for the castle and kingdom. A gorgeous little girl with a fire in her soul."

"Mama?"

Lucy smiles sadly. "Yes, Nashi?"

The girl sits up, looking her mother in the eye. "Daddy was Salamander, wasn't he? That's why he can't be here because the Gods called him to help in another world?"

She can't help it, she hugs her daughter tightly. She nods, running a hand up and down her daughter's back.

"Yes, sweetheart. Daddy was called to help the Gods. But you wanna know something?"

The pinkette pulls away, looking at her quizzically. "What?"

She presses a finger to the girl's heart causing her to look down as well. "Even if Daddy is off in another world fighting another battle he will always be with us. As long as we keep him in our hearts he will _always_ be here." Nashi opens her mouth to likely ask another question but it's interrupted by a loud yawn. The blonde smiles in amusement, setting her daughter back down in her bed. "It's getting late my little dragon. Now that you know where Daddy went will you go to sleep?"

The pinkette yawns again, this time nodding as well. "Yes, Mama."

Lucy tucks her in, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Sweet dreams, Nashi." She gets up, walking back to the door.

"Good night, Mama, love you." With one hand on the door handle and the other on the light switch the blonde pauses. She glances back, smiling softly at her daughter.

Even now, after so long her heart still rings with grief for her husband but every night she is reminded that her husband didn't leave her alone. That her firefighting, fun-loving husband did indeed leave a part of himself behind for her to love and cherish for the rest of her life.

And as Lucy turns out the light, quietly closing the door behind her she knows just how much of a blessing her pink-haired onyx eyed daughter is in her life.

Nashi turns over, a tired grin on her lips. Her mother's story still firmly on her mind she looks up, finding a man sitting on the lid of her toy box. Though he's transparent, particularly in the dim light of her dragon night light she can see the gear and helmet of a firefighter much like she's seen Mercury's Daddy wear to school.

He grins, showing pointy teeth like hers. "Why, Little Bit, don't you think you should be sleeping?"

She yawns, rubbing an eye. "I am." She murmurs so she can't alert her mother. "I just wanted to say goodnight to you before I go to sleep."

His eyes soften and he lifts the hat off his head, resting it against his chest in a half bow. "So be it, Nashi. I wish you a good night. Remember I'll always be looking after you."

"Just like Salamander." She whispers, finally falling off into her dreams.

Natsu sighs, placing his helmet on his head once more. "Good night, my daughter, I'm sorry I can't be there to help Lucy raise you but I promise to watch over you." With that, he fades into the night, once more lost to the living world.

* * *

 **So part of this one came around from the theory that little kids, while so young their minds are open to the other planes. Which means in basic English, they can see ghosts and other beings that adults cannot see. With Nashi, she can see Natsu when he appears in front of her but she does not know at this point in time that he is actually her father. Which is why she hasn't told Lucy about him yet. Aside from the fact that Lucy probably wouldn't believe her because she is a child with a wild imagination.**

 **That said I hope y'all enjoyed Blessing and I will see y'all tomorrow with Sensation. Be prepared for the rush *grins***

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


	7. Sensation

**Beware the fabric of Fate for it has already knotted your past, woven your present, and threaded your future.**

 **Summary: If they were to ask anyone they would be told the greatest feeling in the world is love or lust. To them it is neither...it is the adrenaline rush.**

* * *

Day 6: Sensation

The thrum of the engines rattles the fuselage. The vibration rattling through the metal, through her boots, weaving in and out of her bones until her bones themselves beat with the power of a drum. It ramps up her heartbeat, forces her breath to come in faster and faster gasps until…

It all falls away. She becomes weightless, her slight one-hundred-and-fifteen-pound body hurtling toward the ground at nearly a hundred miles an hour. Head aimed at the ground she rolls over, pulling a switch that releases a cloud of red and gold smoke. Now she really will look like the falling stars he so likes to call her. Her body is alive with the sensation of her veins burning. The fall pushing her to her limits. Below she can see her landing zone coming up quickly. It's a small one—no bigger than the size of a Volkswagen buggy—so she knows that she'll have to make it count.

Pulling the cord releases her chute, jerking her out of her headlong rush and significantly slowing her approach. She works the controls with experience, using every little dip and turn to her advantage. Slowly the rush sizzles away, leaving her bearing a grin. As always she knows there will always be another rush. Another chance for her heart to escape her chest and the drums to ring in her ears. For now, though, she has work to do. She makes the landing, rolling to a stop on the top of the small tower. Before long she's up and rapidly rolling up the parachute. She sets it back in the bag and zips it up, pulling it on again.

With purposeful steps she approaches the air vent, pulling a silver cylinder similar to a pen from her blonde hair that releases the long tresses. The pen, she twists until half of it comes off. She turns it over, revealing a screw bit and attaches the pieces so the bit is pointing out. Pressing a button on the other side has the other half of the cylinder unfolding into a handle. Grabbing it with one hand, she aligns the other with a screw in the corner of the vent.

It only takes a couple minutes before the four-inch-long screw is dropping to the gravel beneath her feet. She repeats this twice then refolds the screwdriver as the vent cover drops down on its remaining screw. Standing she sets the pen above an ear and pulls eight rings from a bag on her belt. She puts the rings on each finger, leaving only her thumbs without the dull metallic jewelry then grabs the top of the vent. Grinning she leaps up, jumping into the vent feet first.

As she falls she stretches out her hands, the action causing the magnetized rings to stick together. Hearing the satisfying _click_ she balls her fists, sticking them out at her sides to catch the duct. The magnet rings work, easily slowing her headlong fall. Below her feet, a vent comes into view and she pulls a hand away from the duct wall. Her weight pulls the magnets still on the wall down just enough for her to control her descent. Once her head is above the branching vent she reaches her hand into it, waiting for the _click_ before pulling her other hand off and successfully climbing into the branching vent.

She chuckles. "Well, that was easy."

The new duct is a slight bit smaller than the first, making it harder for her to crawl but after fifteen minutes of struggling she smirks when she looks through one of the vents to find a supply closet. The rings come off, two of them sliding onto each index finger while the rest return to the bag in her belt. Then she turns each set of rings until they settle together with a small _snick_ and the metal expands into several small plates. These, she pushes forward—as if pushing them off her finger—into a claw shape. When the metal meets over the tip of her finger it locks into place effectively forming a metal claw.

With both claws locked she sets the tips under the edge of the vent and pries. The vent comes up with only a small amount of struggle. Pushing it aside she falls into it head first, one hand grabbing the edge to hold her while the rest of her body unfolds into the supply closet. With her feet on the ground, she pulls the vent back into place then crouches, utilizing the space to pull out the parachute and quickly refold it in an efficiently practiced manner. Ensuring the cords aren't tangled the blonde repacks the bag, rising to her feet while pressing a finger to the earpiece wrapped around her left ear.

"Starlight to Base. Target location infiltrated, proceeding to elimination."

The blonde moves to the door, opening it a crack to scan the dim hall. A few seconds later her com crackles. " _Base to Starlight. Eliminate then escape."_

She rolls her eyes in exasperation, slipping out of the supply closet to creep down the tiled hallway. The smell of antiseptic and bleach is nearly overwhelming but it's the sounds of monitors and someone coughing that has the hair on the back of her neck standing on end. Slinking against the wall into a turn in the hallway she activates the com once more, her voice no more than a hiss.

"No dip. Starlight out."

 _Idiots the whole lot of them._ Starlight pauses, exhaling a breath then looks around the corner. Upon seeing the two men in black suits standing guard outside a hospital room she grins. _Too easy._

Backing up she unlocks the claws, twisting the rings to separate them then pulls out the other rings as well. One by one she locks them together into a small pipe and pulls two small black darts from another pouch in her belt. Starlight glances back around the corner as she loads the darts into the tube. Finding the guards busy she lifts the tube to her mouth. One puff has the guard closest to her grabbing his neck with a grunt. He begins to wobble unsteadily and when the other guard turns to him she grins. _Too bad, sweetheart, you won't survive these darts._

Another puff of air has the second guard going down as well before he can even think of grabbing his radio. With quick hands she unlocks the rings, returning four to the pouch while the other four lock into claws once more. In the time it takes for her to finish locking the claws the guards are dead leaving the blonde with an empty hallway to the hospital room.

She saunters around the turn, easily stepping over the bodies to enter the room. Standing in the mini hall beside the bathroom door the patient inside can't see her. Silently she swings the door shut, flicking the lock on it before walking in to face the blonde man laying on the bed in a hospital gown.

"Sting Eucliffe." The man looks up, the color draining from his already pale face. Starlight leans against the wall, grinning darkly. "Codename Brother Light of the Sabertooth Branch of the Fiore Intelligence Agency. You are hereby charged with Treason against the Kingdom of Fiore and its outlying territories. I have been sent to meet out your punishment. Do you have any last words?"

The panic in his features is forced behind a facade of stoic strength and he frowns. "I see it as having done nothing wrong. I merely followed orders."

Starlight's grin drops to pure evil malice. She walks forward to lean on the railing at the foot of the bed. "You and Brother Shadow have been labeled as Kill On Sight. As such I should've killed you as soon as I walked into this room. The only reason I have not is that I want to know why you would betray our kingdom and our Brothers and Sisters."

Sting scowls, crossing his arms over his chest. The IV in one arm nor his gaunt features escapes Starlight's notice.

"I _told_ you, Sister Starlight. Brother Shadow and I had to follow orders. We all know the code. Order before Chaos. Loyalty over Greed. Secrecy above—

"Transparency," Starlight finishes. "I know, Light, but you and Shadow betrayed that when you sent Fioran Intelligence to Tartaros."

"You think we wanted to?!" He snaps at her, his eyes hard with anger.

At first, she snarls but as she thinks about it the snarl dies and she looks hesitant. "Then why? Why not just come to the Branch head or even better the Agency head?"

Her coworker shakes his head. "Impossible to do when your Branch head is the one handing out orders." Starlight tenses in shock and he nods. "Before we would even have gotten near the Agency head and the board of Masters the head would've had us terminated."

"Jiemma." She mutters the name under her breath. Sting looks away in shame.

"Believe me, Starlight, Shadow and I didn't want to do it. We would never willingly betray our Sisters and Brothers but when it comes _Him_ there is no turning down an order."

The blonde closes her eyes, taking a deep breath and exhales, her grip on the railing loosening as she does. "How far?" He shakes his head and she scowls. "Light, how far has this reached?"

Sting sighs, his eyes falling to his hands resting in his lap. "Everyone in our branch." He swallows. "He has everyone in our Branch under his hand. One wrong move and he finds the slightest reason to terminate them."

Starlight bites her lip hesitantly, a million and one thoughts turning through her head. She glances at Sting once, twice, then a third time before she sighs holding a hand out. "Give me your key. From here on out Brother Light of Sabertooth is terminated." Seeing the man is frozen in shock she scowls. "Eucliffe, give me your key before I actually do terminate you."

Pulling a chain from around his neck, he rushes to follow her order. As the white silhouette of a saber tooth tiger head hovers above her palm he hesitates for only a second before letting it go. He lays back, his grief clear in his eyes. "Brother Light is terminated." He murmurs the words, attempting to wrap his head around the statement while Starlight tucks the pendant in a pouch on her belt. She begins walking to the window then pauses, turning back to him.

"There is one more thing I'm gonna have to do to make the situation match the fact there are two dead guards outside your door."

Sting groans. "No."

"Yes." She grins, walking to the IV stand and pulling a green dart from her belt. "Atropine. Undetectable in the blood unless the doctors are looking for it, the temp paralysis should wear off in a few hours. Enjoy being a statue until then." With that she jabs the dart into the syringe port, watching the liquid draw from the dart into the tubes. Sting lays back, his eyes on her.

"You do realize that when this is over I will come back and kick your ass for this, right?"

For the first time, Starlight smiles softly, tucking the empty dart back in her belt. "I'll hold you to it, Eucliffe. Remember, we don't make threats we make—"

"Promises." He murmurs, his eyes closing as his body begins to go numb.

Starlight turns and walking to the window, uses her claws to score a large 'X' in the glass. She kicks out the window, glancing back. "Until next time, Brother." And she jumps.

Adrenaline rushes through her veins once more, the one high that never gets old no matter how many times she does it. Three floors below Sting's room she pulls the cord for her parachute the second time that night, easily maneuvering the canvas in the darkness of the late night around the hospital's corners.

On the street far below she spots the flatbed truck motoring along and angles the chute backward, slowing her descent until she's able to calculate the correct timing for hitting the truck. The rush in her veins forces time to slow, her breathing echoing like drums in her ears as her height decreases. At a snail's crawl, her feet hover just above the flatbed and with a daring grin she lets go of the parachute controls, dropping onto the moving truck. After pulling the chute in and stuffing it back in the bag to be repacked later she walks up to the window of the cabin, grabbing a convenient railing as she presses two fingers to her com.

"Starlight to Base. Target eliminated."

" _Copy, Starlight. Return to Base for Debriefing._ " Her eyes narrow, fully focused on something a million miles away.

 _ **XxX**_

"Welcome folks to Red Bull Slackship 2019! We're here live in Hargeon for another round of daring stunts and fabulous tricks. Which of these fifteen slacklining professionals will be able to claim first place?"

A man dressed in a black sleeveless T-shirt and white cargo pants drifts through the crowd. His onyx eyes dart from person to person before returning to the tall white ship moored broadside against the dock. Amidst the rigging, he can see a few of the crew strapped in safety harnesses working on ensuring the lines are tight.

He grins, white teeth flashing sharpened incisors as he heads to the ship. At the gangplank, a security guard extends an arm preventing him from getting on. "Pass?" Nonchalantly the pinkette pulls the pass hooked on a lanyard out of his white muffler showing it to the guard. The guard nods, stepping aside to allow him by before stepping in the way again.

On board he walks up to an ebony skinned, black-haired man holding a clipboard, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention. The man turns, at first scowling then grins. "Well, I'll be damned. Igneel! I didn't think you were gonna make it!"

The pinkette grins, fist bumping him. "You really thought that, Arcadios? That I wouldn't make the one competition I've been dying to do all year?"

"Okay, I'll give you that one. I was about to give away your spot if you didn't show up though." Arcadios laughs, slapping the pinkette on the back.

He steps back, throwing his arms wide. "Come on, Arcadios! This is me we're talking about."

"Aye, I should know by now." Arcadios chuckles. "Igneel Drake never turns down a challenge." He reaches into a crate by his side, throwing the pinkette a harness before tapping his clipboard. "Now put that on. You're up in three turns and you're gonna need the time to get up there."

The pinkette rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Ain't my first Airline challenge."

As he walks away he hears the coordinator call out, "Airline ain't Slackship, Igneel!" He waves him off, approaching the rigging beside the other competitors before he pulls on the harness. Almost immediately after he's snug in the harness a crew member is hooking him into the safety line and directing him up the rigging. Unlike the other newer professionals unused to the heights he races up the rigging, reaching the top within the time it takes for two competitors to switch on the slacklines. On the yardarm he pops a squat, silently observing the competitor currently on the lines. He tunes out the announcers for the moment, his observations leading him to shake his head when the competitor lands a jump wrong and falls to the net below.

"That'll knock some points off his score." Igneel glances to his left, finding a black-haired man about his age and size sitting beside him. Considering he's come up the rigging after himself, Igneel knows this competitor will be going after him.

"And now, making his first appearance at Slackship if not his first in the Airline circuit we present Igneel Drake!"

The pinkette grunts, rising to his feet to walk the yardarm to the line. "It might but it's not the fall the judges' score." With that he steps onto the line, walking heel to toe to the center before he turns his feet crossline to face the crowd and bows. He holds this position until he hears the bell and turns to face the yardarm.

He pushes his weight down on the line, counting to five in his head then pushing up. The spring in the line gives more lift, lifting his feet off and he leaps forward, curling his body into a front flip. He comes out of it in a spread position where his chest is centered on the line. As he bounces up he grabs the line, using his foot to push his body in a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree spin.

The pinkette comes down into another chest bounce, this time using the lift to change his position so he comes down thighs first in a butt bounce on the line. Bouncing up he brings his heels under the line to 'hook' it then falls into a second butt bounce. When he comes up this time the extra snap behind the line gives him extra air to spin one hundred and eighty degrees, with his legs crossed underneath him so that he lands in a Buddha position. Once more he bounces back up onto his feet. He turns his feet crossline and bounces backward, leaping from his beginning line to the secondary.

Thoroughly enjoying his time he laughs, landing on the second line in another butt bounce. He rises to his feet, launching into the air to front flip onto the middle of the line. As he comes down he exhales slowly, his mind on the next set of tricks he's to do, and jumps into the air coming down in another butt bounce. Before he's even at the highest point of the jump he pulls forward into a third front flip. Coming out of it he spreads his body to land in yet another chest bounce.

Coming up, he grabs the line with one hand, setting his opposite foot onto the line as well. He pushes off with his foot, spinning on the hand to face the yardarm once more. He grins, rising to his feet then backflips, landing with the right foot flat on the line, his left laying flat against it while his left knee drops below the line. He knows his time is almost out, three minutes always goes by quickly. So to end his performance with something that will wow the crowd he rises to his feet once more, dropping back into a butt bounce then flipping forward into a front flip that lands him, standing, back on his starter line. As the bell rings he bows, laughing in amusement at the cheers of the crowd.

"And that was Igneel Drake folks. As always talented and daring with his stunts." The pinkette turns, walking heel to toe back to the yardarm. "Next on the line is Ryeos Skia. Now he and Igneel have been at each other's throats the past few competitions, each trying to outdo the other in points and stunts. I, myself, am quite curious to see what he's come up with to wow the crowd after Igneel's fabulous performance."

As he passes the man by on his way to the rigging, they share a knowing look and the man is stepping onto the line.

Igneel hooks himself onto the safety rope and descends the rigging. Back on deck, he takes off the harness, setting it aside until the next round. While the crowd cheers he leans against the railing of the ship, looking out over the water when his phone buzzes. He arches an eyebrow but reaches for it, unlocking it to scan the message. His brows furrow and he sighs, returning the device to his pocket. The pinkette, listening to the announcer alert to the halfway point in his competitor's routine presses two fingers to the com in his ear, glancing around for anyone too near before murmuring, "Salamander to Base. Target located." His competitor's run comes to an end and he looks up, watching the man begin to descend the rigging more slowly then himself.

" _Base to Salamander. Copy. Elimination approved."_

Great. Just Great. He's in a bind as to what to do. He sighs, pulling away from the railing.

"Ain't nothing left to it but to do it."

His expression guarded he approaches his competitor, meeting his eye. "Brother."

Ryeos tenses, a hand on his harness, then his shoulders drop. "Brother."

The pinkette turns, walking down the deck, away from the people surrounding the rigging and his competitor follows him. When they're out of sight of onlookers Igneel turns to him. "Rogue Cheney. Codename Brother Shadow of the Sabertooth Branch of the Fiore Intelligence Agency. You are hereby charged with Treason against the Kingdom of Fiore and its outlying territories. I have been sent to meet out your punishment." He pauses, stating more slowly, "However due to new information I am only required to Terminate Brother Shadow."

He can see the gears turning in the man's head. After all this man—his battle-brother—is known for his genius throughout the Agency. Rogue reaches for the necklace around his neck, pulling it out from where it sits under his t-shirt. Slowly he holds it out, looking the pinkette in the eye. "I trust you, Brother Salamander, to clear our names or else the entire Sabertooth Branch will be Terminated because of one man. From here on out Brother Shadow is Terminated."

Salamander takes the black saber tooth pendant, his expression serious. "Brother Shadow is Terminated." He agrees. His competitor turns away, returning to the base of the rigging where the others are sitting and Salamander turns away, turning on his com once more. "Salamander to Base. Target Eliminated."

Pocketing the pendant he returns as well, listening to the announcer list off the people remaining in the competition. Just as he hears the announcer call his and his competitor's name he gets a reply.

" _Copy, Salamander. Return to Base for Debriefing."_

He scowls, sliding his harness back on for the next round. His orders can wait until he wins.

 _ **XxX**_

The plane engines are loud, too loud for her to even think. Still, she's happy to be back on home turf. In black jeans and a black leather jacket over a dark blue tank top instead of the form-fitting armor suit she'd been wearing she steps out of the plane. On the tarmac below dressed similarly to herself in black jeans and a black jacket is a very familiar pinkette, though upon further inspection his jacket is missing the sleeves from the shoulder down and he has no undershirt on revealing tight lithe muscles. Starlight grins and leaping on the stairwell railing slides down to land in front of him. She lurches forward, wrapping him in a tight hug.

He chuckles, hugging her back. "I missed you too, Starlight."

The blonde plants a quick kiss, first on one side of his lips then the other. When he turns to follow her she kisses him on the lips, her hands locking around his neck. Salamander returns it, his hands resting on her hips possessively until they have to pull away to breathe. He leans his forehead against hers, content to see the emotions flit across her chocolate eyes. A gleam enters them and she grins. "You'll never believe what I did this time, Natsu."

He grins in return. "I don't doubt it, but you'll never believe how I did this time."

Realization flares in her eyes and they pull away, walking toward two black motorcycles sitting inside an empty hanger.

"Oh yeah, how was your competition?"

Natsu nods to the bikes, reaching down to toss her a helmet sitting on the ground. "I'll tell you on the way to Base."

She arches an eyebrow. "You finally got the coms in the helmets fixed?" As she pulls her helmet on she flips a switch on the inside, a small ring coming from the earpiece before she hears his voice.

" _Lucy!"_ He whines. " _Is it so hard to believe that I got it done when I said I was gonna get it done?"_ Through her tinted visor, Lucy sees him shake his head. " _No trust. After almost a decade you still don't trust me. If you can't trust your boyfriend then who can you?"_

Her grin darkens. " _Oh, I don't know. How about Titania, She-Devil, Ice, Metal, Bookworm, Leo—"_

" _Okay, I get it."_ Natsu snaps, his motorcycle turning over with a muted roar. " _You can trust anyone in M3. I still can't believe you didn't think I wouldn't get the coms fixed."_

Her bike turning over, she looks at him. " _Natsu,"_ She coos. " _If there is anyone I trust with my life it is you. But trusting you with my life and trusting you to get something done are two completely different things."_

Slowly they pull out of the hanger, turning for a side road to a nearby gate and Natsu grumbles. " _Okay, I'll admit it. It took a little while but the time was worth."_

The gate rolls back and they drive through, easily weaving through airport traffic. Dipping sharply between two taxis he glances over to find Lucy playing tag with a semi. " _I convinced Archiver in BP to encrypt the coms. No one can boost the signal so anything said between us stays between us."_

Lucy pulls back when a taxi slams on the brakes, her bike leaning back until only her rear wheel is riding the asphalt. Leaning harshly to the left she brings the bike down at a diagonal and guns the gas to avoid being broadsided by a speeding car. Speeding up to the taxi, she flips the driver the bird. With an angry honk in return, she switches lanes to ride beside Natsu. " _While it is nice to know inner Branch ties are strong how trustworthy is the Archiver?"_

Natsu smirks, weaving around her back tire to come up on her other side. " _Trustworthy enough to know that if he gives anyone the encryption key he'll be feeding a polar bear family."_ The road empties as they get further from the airport and when Lucy finds no other cars around she slows down, coming to a stop in the middle of the lane. Natsu switches to the other lane, slowing to a stop beside her.

She rolls her eyes. " _Threats, how cliche."_

He shrugs. " _Hey, it worked. There's only one encryption key and only he and I know it. If he tells I'll know and will Terminate him."_

" _Speaking of Termination…"_ Revving their engines they take off simultaneously. They lean down, tucking their bodies closer to the gas tanks and their speed increases dramatically. " _How did Brother Shadow take it when you came for him?"_

The only reason he can hear her above the wind is that the com is built into the helmet to be directly next to his ear. If it was anywhere else he knows he wouldn't be able to hear her at all. " _I'm not gonna lie, Starlight."_ As one they lean sharply into the turn, the adrenaline of knowing one wrong move at over two hundred miles an hour could kill them bringing a head rush to the mix. " _I was really fucking happy when I got that text from you. I get to keep my rival and we have a reason to go back and find Light and Shadow once this is over. Ryeos wasn't happy about it but when I offered him the out he took it without question."_

A natural ramp of rock comes up alongside the road and he veers off, striking the ramp at full speed. In the air, he revs the engine forcing the bike back, tire over tire into a backflip. With the amount of air the launch gave him he has just enough time to straighten out before he's landing on the road once more.

Through the com, Lucy laughs, though she remains on the road itself. " _Alright, Show Off, now that you've had your airtime for today how was the competition? I know you were pretty pissed the last time Ryeos took your trophy."_

Natsu grins, riding low beside her. " _First, second, and third round we were pretty much tied until he messed up on an Atomic Butt Bounce that gave him a faceful of net."_ He leans up, slowing to watch her perform a nearly ninety-degree wheelie before she's dropping back onto both tires and they're speeding along.

" _So I'm guessing the Fearless paid off?"_

" _Aye, it was tricky to slide into the Gambit spin right off the Fearless but it apparently wowed the judges so I wasn't complainin'. Anyway, how did things go with Brother Light?"_

She hums, beginning to weave across the lanes around him. Natsu does the same, relishing in their elegant, dangerous, death-defying, and mostly crazy idea of flirting...well besides zip-lining from the Domus Flou to the Palace Mercurius in Crocus at midnight. " _Things weren't exactly as easy as you had them. Though testing my parachuting ability was a lot of fun. Oh! Those new darts the tech team came up with work wonders. The guards were down within a minute."_

He'd shake his head if he wasn't looking out for their stopping point. For as long he has known his girlfriend, they've always fit together like puzzle pieces what with their death wish and their adrenaline addiction. Co-workers for ten years, friends for nine, and in a relationship for the past five the pinkette still finds it hard to believe that he's had the luck to run into the one person who is willing to jump out of a plane thousands of feet above the ground in little more than a wingsuit. Lucy zips by, pulling yet another wheelie so far back she's nearly touching the ground.

And their co-workers think he's the crazy one?

Up ahead he finally spots the little run down shack sitting on the side of the road. Nearly fifty years before it had been a popular diner for the weary traveling between Tenrou and Galuna. Now, however, it's a rundown building long forgotten since the Crocus interstate was opened. Natsu slows down, drifting into the dusty parking as he waits for his girlfriend to realize she's already flown out of com range. Pushing his bike into the shed beside the building he hears the bike's engine roaring back into range not three minutes later followed by his girlfriend skidding to a stop out front. The flying rocks and sand most likely blinding him if not for the visor he now pushes up.

" _Did you forget it's only twenty miles out?"_

Lucy rolls her eyes, snatching a pebble off the ground to flick at him as she pushes her bike into the shed. " _Shut up. I was having fun pulling wheelies. Now I just need to figure out how to master the stoppie without running my face into the ground."_

Grinning he grabs a metal door at the top of the shed and pulls it down, ensuring it's locked before turning to his left. " _Weeellll, you could just wear your helmet like you're supposed to then you won't keep busting your head open."_

He holds a thumb to a pad in the wall and a green light scans it. Lights lining the ceiling flash green then turn to nearly snow white illuminating the previously dark space.

" _Fuck you. It's only fun if you get a scar out of it."_

The space jolts, revealing it to be an elevator and he turns, winking at her. " _While it would be nice to pin you against the wall and have you there is nowhere near enough space nor time."_

Reminded of where they are Lucy removes her helmet, turning off the com as she does. She shakes her head, her blonde hair falling off her shoulders in a long golden wave. "You and your way with words, Mr. Drake." Using his everyday alias as she playfully glares at him.

She wants to play with their everyday aliases? He can do that. He removes his helmet and grins. "As ever, I have nothing compared to the living poetry that is Ms. Layla Lucky." Ha! After so long he finally gets her ever so stoic mask she wears on Base to shatter into a million pieces with one statement that has her flushing as red as a tomato.

"W-wh-I-I don't know what you're talking about." She tilts her nose up, turning away from the pinkette and he cackles. A blush and stuttering all in one go? His quota of embarrassing his girlfriend has been filled for the week.

Maybe.

Stepping around the rear tire of his bike he forces her to back up into her own. Pinned between him and the bike with nowhere else to go she glares at his onyx eyes in rapidly fading anger. He smiles softly, tilting her chin up with a crooked finger. "Come on, Luce," he murmurs. "you know I was just teasin' ya." With that he leans down, kissing her softly. Her hands come up to wrap around his neck once more and she pushes it, taking the kiss longer and deeper into not so friendly territory.

"If you two love-birds don't stop sucking lip I'm putting you both on two months training at opposite ends of Earthland." Startled by the voice coming from a speaker hidden somewhere on the elevator they pull away, a small blush clear on their cheeks.

Natsu turns to the black dot set high on the back wall, glaring at the hidden camera. "Fuck you, ya metal-headed prick. Wait until I get down there I'll kick your ass all the way to Peregrande."

There's a yelp over the speaker then, "Sorry about that, Salamander. Metal here has just been handed a three-month transfer to Sin. Now you may continue where you left off."

He sighs at the feminine voice, turning to Lucy with apologetic eyes. The blonde merely shrugs, looking up at the camera. "Hey, She-Devil?"

The speaker crackles.

"Yes, Starlight?"

Lucy grins darkly, moving past Natsu to stand eye to lens with the camera. "If you know what's good for you, you'll remember I still have a certain video. And if I recall I still have a certain blonde man I can send it to. I'm just _sure_ ," She purrs the word. "he would love to see what you think of him." After that, the speaker goes quiet and Lucy turns to her boyfriend grinning triumphantly. Seeing his confused expression, however, she shrugs. "Hey, the rules state you can't blackmail someone from another Branch. It doesn't say anything about blackmailing people in your Branch."

Snapping his jaw shut he shakes his head, looking at her in adoration. "Now I remember why I fell in love with you. You are absolutely devious." She giggles and they both turn when the elevator comes to a stop. When the lights around the ceiling turn green Lucy pulls up the metal door revealing long well lit tiled halls with people going about their business.

In the middle of the hall, standing stock still waiting for instructions are two men dressed in blue overalls. Recognizing them as mechanics first Lucy than Natsu toss their helmets to them with the one on the left catching the former's and the one on the right the latter's. Natsu grins, stepping off the elevator. "Tell the boys down below they've done a good job with tuning the engine but they may wanna check the shocks. Fell a little hard on that last jump."

The one who caught his helmet salutes. "Yes sir, Salamander, sir!"

Lucy merely rolls her eyes, looking at the mechanic. "Rides well, handles the speed just fine but go through and check the headers, it sounded like they were heating up just a tad bit too much."

Copying the first mechanic he salutes. "Yes, Ma'am. I'll see to it personally."

She nods. "Thank you. You're dismissed."

With that, the duo walks away from the elevator leaving the mechanics to enter the elevator. As they turn a corner she sighs. "I really wish they didn't do that."

Natsu just snorts, shoving his hands in pockets. Really he hates not having anything to do. If his body ain't in motion in some way, shape, or form he's thoroughly bored out of his mind. Walking being one of those things that leaves his mind to wander just a tad too much. "What else do you expect, Starlight? We're ranked higher then they are. If they don't show proper respect they can get demerited for it."

"I know, I know." The blonde growls. Turning another corner they approach a set of metal doors with a symbol of an odd looking bird etched into the metal. Lucy approaches one side of the doors, staring into a lens until it glows green. The doors slide open and Natsu grins, looking out over the sprawling space within filled with a massive array of objects ranging from several computer banks to a table with a hologram of some city surrounded by several people.

"Wanna know something, Starlight?"

She smirks. "It's good to be home again?"

After they walk through, the doors close behind them and Natsu walks up to the railing overlooking the computer banks below.

"Fairy Tail." He grins. "Home of the craziest and most insane people on Earthland."

They hear a bark of rough laughter and as one turn to see a raven-haired man walking up the steps.

"You must mean yourself, Flame-brain, cause ain't no one else that stupid." He stops in front of them and Lucy rolls her eyes.

"Hello to you too, Ice."

The man grins, looking at her. "Hello, Starlight, how was your mission?"

She nods cordially. "It went just about as well as any mission can."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Natsu scowls, stepping between the two. "Ice prick who the fuck do you think you are calling me stupid? Last I checked I'm not the one who loses his shirt every ten seconds."

Ice glares at him, crossing his arms over his chest. "Fuck you. I do not lose my shirt every ten seconds."

When Lucy snorts, Ice turns to her and she gestures at his body.

"Might wanna rethink that statement."

He glances down, looks up three seconds then looks down again. Shock overwrites his expression finding his shirt gone. "Damn it, not again."

Lucy walks past him, continuing on down the steps and Natsu chuckles, patting his shoulder. "Nice try, Ice for brains. Learn to keep a shirt on before you try to taunt." With that, he walks past as well jogging down the steps to catch up to his girlfriend. At the bottom of the steps, they turn down the incline leading past the computer banks. After the first five rows, they come to another set of the steps. This one only being a couple high, Natsu jumps down them similarly to how a kid would. Lucy only shakes her head, following her childish boyfriend up to the black wall under the wall of screens.

In the wall, a pad is set similar to the one in the elevator. This one, though, is big enough for him to set his entire hand on it. The screen glows green then a white line races down the wall. There's a hiss and two doors retract into the wall permitting them into a short white hall. Stepping into this wall has the doors closing behind them, leaving them in what seems to be a seamless white room… until a door opens at the opposite end. They school their features, walking quickly but quietly through the new door into a study like space with only two other people present.

The room is covered in a dark brown hardwood flooring, shining in the sunken lights in the ceiling. The walls are painted black, the paint mostly hid by tall bookshelves that stretch around the room from wall to wall. Sitting near the back of the room behind a large desk is an old man, his face covered in freckles with a receding hairline. Compared to the chair he's sitting in, he appears diminutive, almost dwarf sized.

However, his appearance doesn't fool the duo. They know his lethality and his importance. Standing side by side in front of the desk they bow. "Master Makarov."

The diminutive man observes them before nodding. "You may rise." Following his order, they look straight ahead, not daring to look their superior in the eye. Makarov leans forward, pressing his fingertips together in a temple like shape. "Starlight, you reported in first so we'll hear your summary first." And she does. Stating everything from her dive out of the rickety plane to her conversation with the ex-intelligence agent to landing on the back of the flatbed. Throughout the half an hour long summary their Superior remains silent, calmly taking in the details. When she finishes he frowns. "Starlight, while you claim to have succeeded in your mission you defied orders and did not Terminate your target. The higher ups will crack down on you, are you prepared for that kind of weight?"

She swallows. This is it. The one conversation she's been practicing since she boarded the plane back to Magnolia. "Master, if you want my honest opinion Brother Light and Brother Shadow were only following orders. As all Brothers and Sisters are to do by Code. In that time I took the only out I deemed safe enough for me to fill mine in a way that completed the mission and kept a civilian alive."

Makarov's expression twists, his features taking on a more amused tone. "Yes, I can see this. Very well, I will let it slide. Please produce your evidence of completing your mission." Pulling out the white saber tooth necklace from her belt she sets it down on the desk and returns to her position. She can't leave until their Master dismisses them after all. Nodding in approval Makarov looks to the pinkette. "Salamander, first I must commend you on first place in your competition. Next, I must state the obvious. Your target is still alive. What will you do when word reaches the Agency big shots?"

Natsu frowns, his eyes still on the wall ahead. "Sir, I firmly believe that I made the right decision in only Terminating Brother Shadow. Ryeos and Logan are innocents in this fiasco. I prefer to leave civilians out of any Agency problems." He _knows_ he's pushing his boundaries but the pinkette also knows that he refuses to have their friends killed because of a crooked Agent. Not again. Not like Brother Flame…

"Very well," Makarov's words draw him from his thoughts and he resists the urge to look the man in the eye. "If you'll present your evidence of completing your mission we will move onto the next item in our agenda." Looking at his belt, he gently pulls the black saber tooth necklace from a pocket, depositing it beside the white one. As he returns to his original position Makarov takes both necklaces, looking them over carefully then setting them in a small wooden box sitting open on his desk. He closes the lid, locking it, then hands the box to the white-haired woman standing slightly off to the left behind him.

"She-Devil, please take this to the safe until they are required."

The woman nods, her expression stern. "Right away, Master."

As soon as the door slides shut behind her, his shoulders drop and he looks at the duo. "You may rest."

Natsu groans, falling backward into the armchair he purposefully situated himself in front of for just this moment. "Thank the gods. I hate standing like that. If there's one thing I could go without it's the standing at attention." Lucy's lips quirk in a small smirk and—more gracefully than her boyfriend—settles into the second armchair.

"You would think that after serving five years in the military you'd be used to it."

He rolls his eyes. "It was the only thing about military life I hated."

Makarov clears his throat, gaining their attention. When they look to him he allows a small smile. "While it's nice to see you two getting along so well there are a few things we need to discuss before She-Devil returns."

Natsu frowns, sitting up in his chair. "Yeah, what's with that, Gramps? Normally She-Devil's in here for everything."

His smile falls. Opening a drawer he pulls out a manila folder. "Because of the situation in the Sabertooth Branch, HQ is cracking down. They're reaching into the Branches and inserting spies to weed out other traitors."

Natsu and Lucy share a look, the blonde reaching forward to grab the folder.

"Spies within a spy organization, Master?"

"I'm afraid so, Starlight." Makarov sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She-Devil is loyal to Fairy Tail and _only_ Fairy Tail but with the higher ups breathing down her neck she's required to report anything she hears."

Scowling, Natsu skims over the paperwork. Judging by the fact they've only received one folder it'll most likely be a partner mission. That's just fine by him. He and his girlfriend are one of the best teams in the Branch. Well besides the four-man team the old man likes to put them in with the stripper and Titania. Speaking of which… a line in the folder catches his attention and he looks up.

"Why was Titania sent to HQ?"

Above himself, Lucy, and the stripper, Titania is one of the best spies in their Branch. To have sent her to play with the bigwigs means something real is going down. Makarov grins darkly. "If the higher-ups want to stick their nose in our business then I will stick my nose in theirs. That and Titania has a bone to pick with one of the Board members."

The Board of Directors is made up Branch Heads who have been promoted to stay in HQ full time. The blonde bites her tongue to keep from laughing. She finds it quite hilarious that the one person most likely to kill a Board member and get away with it has been sent. Staying out of the ensuing topic between her boyfriend and their Master about who the Board Member may be she skips to the end of the file, reading through their next mission. Her eyebrows rise in shock and she glances up.

"Master, are you sure about this next target?"

He nods. "Very much so. If we're to find proof and crack down on the Sabertooth Head before any more are Terminated then we'll need his right hand, Sister—"

"Warp?" The pinkette asks in confusion. "I thought she went Rogue after her Termination papers were sent out?"

Again Makarov nods. "Aye, she went Rogue. That's why you two are gonna go after her and 'Terminate' her like you did with Brother Light and Brother Shadow."

"Salamander," Lucy calls him in muted excitement. "It says here she's hiding in Clover town. Wanna take one of the humvees and go looking?"

"No!" The lovers look up in surprise, unused to hearing their Master bark so quickly. "After the last time you two literally got a Humvee stuck in between a rock and a hard place I am denying any choice of vehicle larger than motorcycles or off-road equipment."

Natsu grumbles. "That was one time, Gramps. _One time._ We swore we wouldn't bust one up again."

"And I will be making sure of that." The Head states shortly. "You two are absolutely forbidden from driving any more large vehicles."

As the pinkette pouts at the loss of the massive machines Lucy perks up, grinning at her boyfriend. "That's alright. I just remembered the new prototype the Mechanics just got finished building. That's within our vehicle size range and we'll get to test it out for them."

Her boyfriend frowns. "What is so fun about it?"

Lucy gets up, turning to Makarov. "It's the new two-seater ATV that can split into single seaters. Bookworm and I were discussing it before I left on my mission. She said they were looking for two people to test drive it." Carefully, very very carefully, Makarov weighs the pros and cons of their idea. Finding nothing more wrong than the usual worries he agrees.

"Very well, then." He sighs. "Get on down to the garage and get started on your mission. The sooner this is over the sooner we can focus on the rising threat from Alvarez."

Bowing to their Master they turn and leave, Natsu looking at Lucy as they enter the white hall. "First to the garage takes the driver's seat?"

The blonde grins. "You're on."

Watching the adrenaline junkies take off at a sprint Makarov can only shake his head in exasperated amusement. He knows he should be used to his Branch's antics but watching those two reminds him just how much more he doubts he will ever know of the spies under his watch.

* * *

 **Alrighty, so adrenaline junkie NaLu on top of plotting that is just so far out there that I honestly don't know where it came from. But it is here, and it is good.**

 **Also in case you are wondering I went and added a list of tricks Natsu did in the competition.** **This is not the full list of tricks Natsu did. I added some as I was writing. The list below only gives you a general idea of the order of his tricks. If you wish to look them up to see how they are performed google slacklining tricks. You'd be amazed at the sheer amount of tricks there are. If you are curious about the setting, look up Slackship and Airlining for a better idea of what they go through.**

 **Bow - lemur leap - front flip - chest bounce - mojo tap spin - butt bounce - 180 spin - butt bounce mount (next line) - Buddha bounce - Fearless (stand - butt bounce - front flip - chest bounce) - gambit swap - backflip - drop knee - butt bounce - aerial dismount - bow**

 **That said I hope you enjoyed the adrenaline rush and I will see y'all back again tomorrow with Chained.**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


	8. Chained

**HEY YOU GUYS! THIS IS IT! Today's the last day of NaLu Week for me! Well for this year at least. Don't worry. I'll be back again next year and back with more story updates soon but for now go and enjoy the last one shot of NaLu Week 2018!**

 **Summary: He's a _Dragon._ He's meant to be flying through the skies, blasting through clouds and enjoying the gentle rays of the sun warming his scales. Instead he's chained to the Earth, forbidden from ever touching the skies again.**

* * *

Day 7: Chained

He knows he needs to sleep while he can. Once the sun sets the trainers will be back and then he won't sleep until the sun comes up. By the sun and moon, his wings itch.

The muscles in his back twitch causing a twinkling sound that reminds him why he can't spread his wings. They've been chained to his sides, the chain too far back to reach with his paws. If only his mouth wasn't strapped shut. He would've been out of this horrible place many moons ago.

Forcing a harsh exhale earns a crowd of gasps. That, at least, is something he can relish in. The sounds of shock and awe he earns from the dumb primates that call themselves humans. Seriously when did primates get it into their fragile heads they can capture a dragon of all things like a regular animal?

These scaleless slugs apparently have or else he'd still be flying through the skies. Gods, when was the last time he flew high enough to see the curve of the earth? Too long in his opinion.

Annnd his wings itch again.

When he gets out of here he's gonna rub a forest to the ground trying to scratch it. Or maybe fly until his wings fall off. Either one is more enjoyable than his present situation. Well, there is something small about his situation he can enjoy.

Speaking of which, it should be about time.

The sound of squeaky wheels followed by shuffling steps greets his hearing. He inhales, tuning out the numerous other humans passing by the glass cage that keeps him prisoner. When the squeak gets louder he allows one eye to open, revealing a jade green iris the size of a human male's head.

It gains another gasp of shock from the humans but he pays it no mind. No. Not when one human, a female comes into view.

Hair the color of the gold in his hoard, brown eyes as expressive and deep as a river in full flood, and a voice like honey this one human always has his full attention whenever she is near. He knows why he hasn't burned this ridiculous place to the ground, the _only_ reason he hasn't turned this places to ashes. Because then he'd lose the only thing that truly brings him any joy.

When she comes into view she does that weird grimace thing he's learned is an expression of happiness and joy among humans. Why a gesture of aggression could be considered joy he'll never know. All he cares for though is that she's doing it.

This is a good day for her then, just as much as the night before was a good night for him. He didn't have his wings whipped because humans are scaleless slime that assume a dragon is just gonna do whatever they command and she probably—hopefully—had a full meal and whole night's sleep.

She stops the rolling cart he's learned is called a wheelbarrow in front of the door to his cage and pulls out a ring of keys. Finding the right one she unlocks each of the several small locks he could melt in one breath—curse the straps around his snout—then rolls the cart in.

As is typical she rolls it around behind him—always careful to not run over his tail—and comes up beside his head. There she sets it down and gently rests a hand on the strap on his snout. She pauses, looking him in the eye for a silent promise.

He knows the ritual. Promise not to escape or eat her when she removes the strap and she'll get to feed him. Hopefully, he'll get to even talk to her again.

In answer he blinks slowly, the eyelid causing a loud _snick_ as it closes and she sighs, reaching down for the lock he can't see nor melt. The lock clicks then the strap is loosening. Before he realizes she's throwing the strap onto the ground beside his paw.

He lifts his head, first shaking it to release the tension in his neck then yawning. As usual, she steps back when he yawns, allowing his jaws to scrape against both the top of the tent and the ground. This time, though, he closes them with a loud _snap_ that has the humans outside the enclosure screaming in terror.

And he huffs in amusement.

His human friend steps forward when he lays his head back down, resting a hand on his snout. This touch, as simple as it seems, has a major effect.

A torrent of images floods his mind. None are his own. They all belong to the human, giving him an explanation of her day without the useless spoken words all other humans use. Being used to thought-speak like this he digests it quickly, musing himself with the flare of irritation he receives over his antics.

He knows she can't handle a river of thoughts like he can so he sends only one. A memory of him diving through the clouds high above the ground. It conveys his irritation, his joy, but most of all the itch in his wings that _won't go away._

The last point causes something else. A light tinkling sound that tickles his ears and considerably brightens his already drabby day.

Sending her a questioning thought he gets in reply an image of him from her eye acting like a mini four-legged beast that trails after the humans sometimes.

Really? How could she, his little piece of gold in this horrible place, compare him to the bite-sized yappers? They're not even big enough for a snack!

Something of his thoughts must bleed through to her because he hears her laughter get louder as his indignation grows. In response he gets an image of the summer sun—the image he long ago taught her is what the others of his kind call him. Along with the image he also sees roaring flames, an image that calls to his ability to wield the wild flame.

Her praise soothes his ire, and he closes his eyes with a rumbling purr. She is and forever will be the only human allowed to see into his mindscape and hear his thought-speak. For she is kind, she is sweet, and she is leaving?!

Her hand is gone from his snout closing the link between them and he opens his eyes to stare after her. No, she is not leaving. She is only doing what she is there for.

That's right. He had forgotten the only reason she's there this time of day is to feed him. There will be better times for musing over his light when she returns after the trainers leave at night.

As she wheels the wheelbarrow around his paws he lifts his head, his long twisting horns nearly scraping the fabric of the tent above him. She uses the room to tip the cart over allowing the pile of meat to fall in between his paws.

What he wouldn't give for a fresh deer or two. Not these rancid hunks the ridiculous humans deem fit to feed him. Gods above he's a dragon not a silly cat from the south. Still, his little light brought the food so he will eat it just to make her happy. He'll do anything to see her happy.

His light backs up, taking the cart with her and he makes quick work of the pile of meat, his lips wrinkling in disgust when he smells a particularly rancid haunch near the bottom. That one he refuses to eat, such that he hooks it with a claw and flicks it over the glass wall keeping the humans from touching him.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees his light shake her head, whether in amusement or annoyance he's unsure. It's harder to tell her emotions when they're not using thought-speak.

With the rest of the meat going down his gullet he huffs a quick flame to burn away the traces between his paws. He can handle his head being strapped to the ground for hours on end, barely stand his wings and tail being chained for even longer, but never will _he_ , a proud dragon, lay his head in the offal of his lunch. That is absurd to even think of.

Plus the blast has another side effect. It warms up the ground for him to be more comfortable for his afternoon nap.

The last of the stench burned away, he lays his head back between his paws. He made a promise to his light, he won't break free from his cage even though now is the perfect time to do so.

She carefully approaches, her feet light on the heated ground. Moons ago he'd learned to regulate his fire so it wouldn't burn her through the thin leather on her feet. Just as she has learned to move slowly after a fresh blast.

And as she walks around his snout for the strap he casts her a baleful look. The same argument they've been having every day since the sun commanded the elderly dragon Winter to give way to the hatchling Spring.

 _Come with me. Run away from this place._

She rests a hand on his snout as she throws the strap across it. The connection is brief, only long enough for a two statement argument.

 _We will get caught and killed if we run._ He knows she's afraid of the other humans. However, _he_ is not.

 _I will burn them to ashes. This place of sorrow and greed will go up in the flames of our wrath._

The lock clicks, once more pinning his head to the ground. She bares her teeth in happiness but her body language says sorrow. As she walks away her hand skims his snout once more, a flickering thought that makes his heart jump.

 _One day._

Yes. One day he will get his light away from this place. One day once more he will fly high, greeting the sun with a happy roar and praising the moon with a blast of his inner fire strong enough to melt a mountain. He will not be alone, though, for his light will fly high with him. He will get to get hear her laughter all the time and be able to share thoughts without the possibility of being punished.

He watches sadly as she returns to the door set in the glass walls, the wheelbarrow preceding her step. With one last glance at him, she steps out, once more leaving him to his thoughts and the numerous dumb apes staring at him.

There's only one human he could never hate and that human has just left him until the moon sits high in the sky. He sighs. He can either be left with his thoughts or can sleep until sundown.

With that, he closes his eyes. His mind wandering into a dozing state that lets his dreams run wild.

He only calls his mind back to the waking world when he smells the blood of the whips. A glance through the small opening in the tent around him confirms his thoughts. The sun has set therefore the show begins.

Oh, Sun and Moon how he hates these things.

Pushing his hearing he tunes out the group of humans currently stomping toward him, tunes out the ruckus of the humans dressed in odd skins until he hears it. The loud voice of the man who brought him down. Who captured him while he slept under elderly dragon Winter's eyes.

Who has kept him prisoner through hatchling Spring's romp, fledgling Summer's flight and now into fighting Autumn's search. He only hopes he can escape with his light before elderly Winter returns or else there will be no escape. Every dragon knows it—they cannot escape elderly Winter's call for sleep.

The gate opens drawing his focus back to the group of humans stepping into his space. Three of them pull out a long braided piece of leather, whips he knows from his light's explanation. He bears the scars on his hide from their biting edge. Enough scars that he can still smell his blood on them.

As they approach him another human darts forward, diving between his paws to where he knows the strap on his snout is attached to the ground. The tension holding his head to the ground disappears and he raises it, turning his snout to show jade eyes lit with quiet anger aimed at them.

He knows that with his snout strapped shut he can't burn them but he can show his anger with his body language. Such that they give the black spikes on his twitching tail a wide berth. The others not wielding whips dash back and forth around him, the chains holding his body to the ground slowly loosening until he's able to rise to his feet.

Still, his wings remain chained at his sides. This fact immediately being brought to his attention by the tightening bind when he attempts to flare them by instinct.

He snarls, turning to glare at the humans closest to his wings when one of the whips crack in front of his nose. He retreats to avoid having to smell blood all night then out of spite uses his tail to knock over several of the apes too close to his backside.

Rumbling his amusement he stalks to the gate. The gate itself is two doors, one door only being open for when the humans come for him. He ducks his head to avoid the edge of the tent and steps out, his head immediately rising again to stand higher than the tip of the tent itself.

Slowly he inhales, his mind rapidly sorting through the fear scent of the other animals, awe from the humans, stale food, blood, sweat, and the bitter tinge of tears. Most likely from the human's little hatchlings.

A whip cracks near his head and he huffs, turning away from it to walk to the large tent lit by lights on the other side of the layout.

He's done this many times since he first woke up. Almost every night the humans release him from the chains restraining his body to the ground, he walks out of the tent, then through a large walkway the humans have cleared for him to approach the large tent where all the humans have gathered.

At the edge of the large tent, he stops, glaring at the humans with the whips. They're the only ones who can tell him when he can move. Quite frankly he just wants them to signal his entrance so he can leave and wait for his light to reappear in his tent for their nightly talk.

Anything will be better than waiting to be made a fool of.

One of the whips snaps across his flank, hard enough that he can already smell the blood flowing from between his scales.

He growls in anger, and as he walks into the tent he makes sure to flick his tail hard enough to gore the human with one of the spikes. Just before his tail enters he flicks it harder, disposing of the dead ape.

It makes him happy, to know that he has made their job harder. The happiness, however, is a gruesome one, one he feels when he is happy with his hunt or winning a challenge by the bears that often try to take his cave. It is not the happiness that he feels when he sees his light.

That happiness is for her and her only.

Stepping into the tent he shakes his head, hearing the humans sitting on the high wood around him gasp in terror. Smoke begins to seep from his nose.

Oh, he knows what these humans want. They want a demonstration. It may not be the demonstration he would surely give them by burning every single human in this horrid place to ash but it's close enough to satisfy the apes until he can find a way to escape.

At the other end of the ring of wood separating the performing humans from the humans sitting on the wood stands an ape in silver armor wielding an axe he knows from experience is extremely sharp. The _dragon slayer_ as his light has put it.

 _A dragon slayer indeed._ He snorts, large clouds of smoke rising from his nose. Ever since he woke up he's made sure the humans have needed a new so-called slayer at least once every time the moon has fully turned its eye upon them.

Glancing at the hole in the tent ceiling he finds no moon and so knows this one will live for some time longer…

If it isn't dumb enough to challenge his strength head-on. Judging by the way the ape is charging at him head on, somehow he doubts it.

He sidesteps, turning his head back to watch the human charge straight into one of the tent's support beams.

 _Can this human be any dumber?_ He rolls his eyes, walking around the ring so his front is to the human. This time being careful to keep his tail swinging in small arcs. Goring the whip wielders are okay, being whipped for goring one of the other humans not so much. In the humans' opinion at least. He doesn't particularly care.

The human gets up, charging at him again and the routine repeats for much longer before he finally gets fed up and smacks the human into the center beam of the tent. Over the entire time, the humans are laughing, apparently enjoying the slayer being smacked around. After it smacks into the center beam he turns to the entrance of the tent, eyeing the two remaining whip wielders as he makes his exit.

He'll feel the marks in the morning. Yet he still has trouble finding it in him to care. He just wants to see his light and sleep.

Back outside in the night air, he trots back to his tent, along the way catching the scent of his light hiding in one of the other animal's tents. He slows down, scenting the tent to be sure and in the time it takes for a whip wielder to crack the blood-scented leather he's confirmed his thought.

He knows she's safe for the time being so he resumes his trot back to his tent, ducking his head to avoid the edge as he walks back into his enclosure.

A whip cracks across his snout, the smack of it splitting the scales of his cheek in two. He whirls around, his lips lifting in the confines of the muzzle to snarl at the human who did it. Alas, his jaw strength is in snapping his maw closed, if it was in opening it he would've snapped the strap already and torn the man in half.

As it is his warning seems to be enough for the human scrambles backward, the whip in the man's hand falling to the ground. Settling his claws on the whip he draws his paw across it—claws sharp enough to slice down a tree cutting the leather to useless braided ribbons. He snarls once more and enters the tent, regretfully returning to his spot in the chains.

He lays down, forcing himself to remember why he hasn't escaped yet… why he hasn't burned this place to the ground and returned to his cave to prepare for elderly Winter.

With a sigh he closes his eyes, ignoring the human chatter to doze. He knows the chains are tightened, his head once more pinned to the ground.

Memories and dreams intertwine allowing him to once more soar through the skies. His claws dig into fresh prey, his fire echoes through stone hollows, his family calls to him. A little sister of a sky dragon as white as fresh snow. An older brother in a metal dragon challenging him to dent his hide. A father of lava warning him to watch his tail in time to avoid a harsh nip from his light dragon nest mate.

And below it all travels a soft hum from the golden-haired human who has so taken after his thoughts.

Until he realizes the hum isn't from his dreams—that the hum is right in his ear, as real as daylight. He opens his eyes, surprised to find his light sitting with her back to the glass, her eyes on him.

Her grimace speaks of happiness, a happiness she always shows to him, and she gets up, slowly approaching to lay a hand on his snout. He purrs—a sound of boulders rumbling through his chest—in greeting.

She laughs.

His light...his starlight, that is who she is to him. She is the only reason he has stayed in this awful place. Has endured such awful treatment when a dragon should be no one's _pet_. Because she is his light in the darkness, his starlight, and because _she is worth it._

They exchange thoughts as fast as they can.

For every one of his _are you okays?_ She responds with _I'm am fine but you are injured._

He won't deny it but he also won't admit it. His wounds will heal, they will scar, just as they always have.

She walks away to a pail he knows contains water and he lifts his head... _wait_ …

He can lift his head?

He looks down, surprised to find the strap that held his mouth shut lying on the ground. He twitches his wing muscles as if to flare his wings in surprise and _his wings open_.

That has him looking back, over his body. The chains... _They've all been removed_.

His starlight approaches him slowly, a hand rising to his snout. He lowers his head to let her touch it once more and a flurry of images crosses his mind.

The image of the man who caught him—a ringleader?—yelling at the whip wielders—dragon tamers?—then an image of the axe from the big tent and his head hanging on a wall.

 _They've decided you are to die tonight_. Is what she tells him.

He growls, _I wish them to try._

Her grimace changes to frustration and she shakes her head.

 _If they are to have their way, He of the Scorching Winds, they will chain you to the ground and kill you. There will be no chance for you to protect yourself._

He's surprised. He has never heard a human say his name in the way of the dragons. It has always been an image, never in the thought-speak of his kind.

He huffs, staring at her balefully. _Why free me when you will only be hurt for it?_

There is no doubt. If she were to stay behind she will be hurt by the other humans. More so than she has ever been. However his fears are unfounded, her grimace returns with the same saddening body language from earlier in the day.

 _The one day I promised you earlier. I wish to seek it now. Flee and take me with you. If you leave there will be nothing left for me but to die as a slave._

He rumbles dipping his head in a nod.

 _Very well. Retreat to my paws, Starlight, for I wish you no harm in what is to come._

Slowly he gets up, a small hiss of pain escaping him. His human darts forward, in between his paws. He sits back on his haunches, one foreleg wrapping around his starlight to hold her close and he inhales, tilting his head back. When he exhales it comes out at a loud roar that quiets everything in a ten-mile radius. The end of his roar turns into a trail of flames that disintegrates the tent above them, the heat in the air melting the surrounding glass.

Even before the air can cool he spreads his wings for the first time since elderly Winter had set in before his capture and brings them down _hard._

Twice more he flaps them harshly to ease the itch in his muscles then he stands, holding his starlight close to his chest. He pushes off with his hind feet.

Gravity is fighting him, attempting to pull him back to the ground. _No!_ He refuses to let gravity keep him chained to the earth for longer then he already has been. It is time for him to return to the skies, this time with his starlight in tow.

Finally, gravity surrenders the fight and he lifts off, just in time for a group of humans to come rushing in sight around the tents.

After gaining enough height he looks down, snarling at the humans with the whips.

 _Burn them, He of the Scorching Winds._

His starlight's words are all he needs. The flame flickers in the back his throat, gathering power until…

It's a torrent strong enough to spread across the area in waves upon waves. Anything and everything in the path is instantly burned to ash.

When he hears his starlight start to cough he turns his head to the east...To his nest and his family and the skies above.

He roars again. His gratitude to the skies. His presence to the gods above.

 _I am here! Sun! Moon! I am free!_

A laugh from his human catches his attention and once more he roars.

 _We are here! We are free!_

* * *

 ***Cackles* So what did y'all think? The perfect way to wrap up NaLu Week or what? Oh and if you're a returning follower of mine, don't worry. I haven't forgotten my other stories. After the stress of NaLu Week I've given my Beta two weeks off while I try find a loophole to drag my brain back from vacation and write up the few remaining chapters for TMC and VT. After that I do hope you'll keep an eye open because big things are abound.**

 **'Til next time,**

 **Grizzly out for the night.**


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